Follow Me
by SakuraMota
Summary: After Soul lets slip she met Giovanni, Silver sets off, determined to find him, with Soul along for the ride.  Can they survive the journey together, or will their tempers drive them apart?  Can they get together by journeys end?
1. Chapter 1: Return

**Note:** I own nothing. Pokemon and its charcters belong to their respective companies. This story is for entertainment purposes only and should/will not be used for profit.

_Follow Me_  
A Pokemon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter One  
_Return_

"Welcome to Johto, little Torchic!" Soul said with a smile as she and the Pokemon got off the Magnet Train. The Fire Pokemon tottered happily behind her as she left the station.

She stretched as they entered the evening air. It'd been a while since she'd been in Johto...not since the incident a few months ago. She stared at her feet, remembering it. Should she tell him? Surely he'd want to know...But then, what was the likelihood of her finding him? It'd been so long since she'd seen him, she wouldn't know where to start looking.

Soul sighed to herself, her face and eyes gloomy. Even if she _did_ find him, she doubted she'd be able to tell him. She couldn't even express her true feelings to him. _That_, she knew, was very, _very _dangerous. She'd only make a fool of herself, and he'd most likely reject her, and quite rudely, at that. No...she couldn't tell him that. She couldn't tell him she was in love. But the other event...

"Are your shoes really that interesting?"

She jolted back to reality so sharply that she was slightly dizzy, but the shock she received when she turned around was much worse.

He cocked an eyebrow at her and put his hands behind his head. "Honestly, could you _be_ more useless right now? You're spacing out right in front of the entrance to the station. Talk about rude _and_ dumb."

Her face flushed. "S...Silver! H...How are you?"

The red-headed boy shrugged. "Same as always. You seem to be your usual spacey self."

Blushing heavier, she rubbed the back of her neck. "S-Sorry; I was thinking about something important."

"Well, you might want to pick a better place next time," he said, turning and walking away.

She couldn't miss this chance...She instinctively followed him. "S-So, Silver, what are you doing in Goldenrod City?"

"Just passing through," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Saw you zoning out and figured I'd bring you back down to earth." He turned to her. "And you?"

"I just got back from Kanto," she said, eying her feet. "This is my first time back in Johto for a few months now."

"Hm," he grunted with a nod. He stopped walking and turned to her. "Anyway, see you later."

He was getting away...Would she have another chance like this? She had to think fast...

"Silver!" she yelled over the din of the crowds, "Do you want to go eat ramen with me?"

He turned and raised an eyebrow at her.

"I...I'll pay for it. My treat," Soul said, fumbling with the hems of her shorts.

Silver's stomach let out a loud growl, and he clutched it with a blank stare.

"Sure."

* * *

"So that's a new Pokemon for you, right?" Silver asked as they sat at the counter of a small open-air ramen stand. He was eying the Torchic in her lap with slight interest.

"Hm? Oh yes, this is Chocobo, a Torchic," she said happily. "He's from the Hoenn region. A man named Steven Stone gave him to me."

Silver nodded and, still staring at Torchic, added, "It looks like a wuss."

The Torchic sank sadly in Soul's lap.

"I figured you'd say that," she sneered matter-of-factly, digging in her bag. "But take a look at _this_ before you pass judgment." She dropped a book entitled, "Pokemon of Hoenn" on the table and flipped through the pages. "Here it is...Chocobo may look small and puny to you now, but one day he'll evolve into _this!_" She tapped a picture of a Blaziken with her finger.

Silver stared at the book for a moment. "...Looks pretty bad ass."

"I know, right?" Soul said, thoroughly pleased. "But for now, he's just a cute little Torchic," she added, giving the Pokemon an affectionate squeeze, to which it reciprocated a happy chirp.

Silver took a sip of his tea and ignored her.

"So, any new Pokemon for you, Silver?" Soul asked as she replaced the book in her bag.

"None worth mentioning."

"Ah..."

Silence. Soul squirmed nervously in her seat as Silver continued to sip his tea and stare ahead. She might as well have not been there. Were meetings with him always this awkward? Actually, she mused, they were usually much worse. Silver was typically much grouchier when they met; now he just seemed indifferent. He didn't mind her presence, but he didn't enjoy it, either. She wasn't sure if she should be discouraged or elated by that.

"So, what did you want?"

Shocked back to reality again, she fumbled with her tea so as to appear busy. "Wh-What?"

He turned on his stool to face her and cocked an eyebrow. "You wouldn't invite me to dinner out of the blue if you didn't want something from me. So cut the crap and tell me what it is."

She flustered; was she that easy to read? She feigned indignation. "Honestly, I haven't seen you in months. Forgive _me_ if I wanted to see how you've been and visit with you." She took an angry sip of her tea.

Silver turned forward again. "I wasn't aware you and I were on such good terms."

"And whose fault is that?" she asked with a haughty smile and raised eyebrows.

He turned and grunted in the beginning of a retort but stopped suddenly, clenched his jaw, and turned back, adding, "...Touché."

"Thank-you very much," Soul said smugly, sipping her tea.

"So are you saying you want to be _friends?_" He emphasized the word with a hint of surprise mixed with distaste.

She smiled and faced him. "I've _always_ wanted to be your friend, Silver!"

He gave her a side glance and then looked away, his cheeks pink, apparently embarrassed by her enthusiasm. "I don't have any friends."

He regretted this statement immediately, because when he looked back, as expected, he found Soul had fixed a sad expression on him. "Look, friends were never at the top of my list of priorities, okay?" he growled, trying to fend off her sympathy.

She looked at the table and, with a shy smile, said, "Well, whether you like it or not, I consider you to be _my_ friend, Silver."

Their food arrived at this point, breaking the awkward tension, much to the relief of both of them. Strained conversation was replaced by the sound of slurping noodles.

Toward the end of the meal, Soul's stomach was in knots. She needed to tell him, and her opportunity was slowly slipping through her fingers. She glanced side-long at him; he was still eating. Taking a deep breath and holding it, she closed her eyes. Nothing to do but take the plunge.

"So...I met your father the other day."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"_What?_"


	2. Chapter 2: Run Away

**Note:** Gave you this a week early. Enjoy~

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Two  
_Run Away_

Noodles hung from his mouth, still attached to the chopsticks he held loosely in his hand. He was staring at her, wide-eyed.

"_What?_"

"I met your father," Soul repeated, trying to keep a steady tone despite her trembling hands. "You know...your father...Giovanni...the ex-head of Team Ro—"

"_I know who my father is._"

She jumped. "O-Of course you do," she said in a much smaller voice than before.

A thousand questions raced through his head, but he wasn't sure where to begin. "When—"

"About three months ago," she answered, predicting the rest.

"Where—"

"In a cave here in Johto. I...I was seeking shelter from the rain and ran into him hiding there."

This, of course, was a blatant lie. But surely he'd think she was crazy if she told him the complete truth...That she'd met Giovanni thanks to a Celebi sending her and Gold hurtling through time...That they'd been teleported against their own will to the cave where his father was hiding.

Silver stared at his mostly-empty bowl of ramen, clenching and unclenching his fists. After a moment of silence, in a much less demanding tone, he asked, "...Did he say anything?"

"Not much," Soul said with a troubled frown. "He challenged me to a battle, and afterward, he left."

He was dying to know. "...Who won?"

"...I did."

The shock hit him harder than he expected; his old man had lost to the same girl from which he himself had suffered defeat after defeat? It seemed preposterous but at the same time poetically poignant.

"Oh, but he did ask one thing," she piped up, rocking his thoughts. "He asked if I knew a red-headed boy and asked if you were well." She smiled. "I told him yes to both, and he seemed pleased, maybe even a little relieved."

Clearly stunned, Silver stared at the table.

Soul squirmed on her stool. He'd been quiet for a long time now...Was it a good idea to tell him after all?

Abruptly, he stood, grabbed his bag, and walked out of the stand.

"Sil—Wai—Ah!"

Soul grabbed her things and started to follow after him, but then she remembered their meal. Hastily slamming money on the counter, she bowed slightly to the chef and very quickly said, "Thank-you very much for the meal; it was delicious, please keep the change!" She then took off after Silver, her Torchic struggling to keep up behind her.

She lost sight of him for only a minute, but a flash of red mixed in the crowd told her which way he'd gone. Scooping Chocobo into her arms, she shoved through the throng.

"Silver! Silver, _wait!_" No good; he either didn't hear her or was ignoring her. As she squeezed closer, she continued to call out, but to no avail. Finally, she reached an opening and grabbed the elbow of his jacket.

He whirled around and angrily replied, "_What?!_"

Startled, she stammered, "Wh...Where are you going?"

He shoved her arm away, replying, "None of your damn business! Now _buzz off!_"

Soul watched as he walked away, and then her face tensed. Stomping after him, she grabbed his arm and spun him around. "I'm _making_ it my business!"

He stared at her, surprised, and she returned his with an unwavering, sincere glare.

"Now...where are you going?" she asked in a firm tone.

Silver's face sunk into his usual scowl, and then he closed his eyes and sighed.

"I'm going to find my father."

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"No."


	3. Chapter 3: Pursuit

**Note:** Last update before HGSS launch. Enjoy!

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Three  
_Pursuit_

"You're...but you don't know where he's gone!" Soul said, her eyebrows raised in concern.

"If he was here in Johto three months ago, then there's a chance he might still be in the region somewhere," Silver said with a sincere stare. "So I'm going to find him."

"But...why?"

"It's none of your business!" He turned and walked off again.

She chased him and grabbed his arm once more. "I already _told_ you, I'm _making_ it my business!"

"Why do you even care?!" he spat. "Why are you being so nosy about my life?! What's it to you?!"

Her cheeks flushed. Now...? Should she tell him...? No. No way. Not when he was in this bad a mood.

He glared at her for a minute, and when he received no response from her glassy stare, he turned and took a few steps. He didn't get far before her voice stopped him.

"_I want to help._"

He wasn't sure he'd heard her right. He turned to find her sincere gaze fixed on him. "Wha...?"

"I'm the last person who saw him," she said, stepping closer. "I could help you with your search. Let me go with you."

"No."

The answer was abrupt and definitive. He was striding away again. Growling in frustration, she ran ahead and stood in front of him, one arm outspread to stop him, the other still holding Chocobo. She glared at him. "_I'm going with you,_" she said.

"Like hell you are," Silver scoffed, striding past her.

"And where exactly do you plan to start looking?"

He paused; he hadn't thought of that yet.

"Judging by the fact that you've stopped, I'd say you have no idea," she said with a snide grin.

He turned and shot her the icy glare he'd perfected over the years.

"I'd say that based on your _childish outbursts_, your plan is to search blindly around the countryside until you're old and gray," she continued, raising an eyebrow at him.

She was right; it pissed him off. "And what would _you_ do, then?"

"Make a strategy," Soul said, straightening. "Figure out where to start looking and then—_calmly_" she shot him a pointed glare—"comb the area and work my way toward the next area of search."

He grunted and put his hands in his pockets. "...I guess you have a point."

"Dang right," she said, nodding triumphantly. Her expression and body language softened. "It's too late to start now. Let's stay at the Pokémon Center tonight, plan where to go, and head out in the morning."

He glared at her but nodded. "Fine."

* * *

In a corner of the PokéCenter, they lounged on opposite sides of the same circular couch, their heads facing one another.

"...So the best place to start would be the furthest west point of Johto and then head east toward Kanto," Soul concluded, tinkering with the map on her PokéGear as she lay on her stomach.

"Well, yeah, that's obvious," Silver said, rolling his eyes as he stared at the ceiling, lying on his back. "I'm so glad I brought you along to point out these things for me. What would I do without you?"

She raised an agitated eyebrow at him. "It wasn't so obvious to you when you were storming out of the city with fire in your eyes," she sneered.

"_So anyway_," he grunted, ignoring her and rolling over to join her perusal of the map, "the farthest point west of Johto is...what?"

She poked at the map and brought up their destination. "Cianwood City," she said, showing him the screen. "I doubt he'd be in an official place like the Safari Zone or within the city limits, but there are lots of uninhabited parts of the island, particularly the west side. He could be in an alcove there."

Silver nodded and was about to say something when he was cut off by the Center's nurse.

"It's time for lights out," she said.

"Oh, yes, ma'am," Soul said, turning her head toward her and nodding.

The nurse nodded at them and flipped a switch, plunging the room into blackness.

"Cianwood City's pretty far from here," Soul whispered, her face illuminated by the glow of her PokéGear, "so I think it'd be best if we flew there."

"You're doing it again," Silver said with a sigh as he rolled over to his side and faced the back of the couch, pulling his blanket up over his shoulders.

Soul puffed her cheeks in a fit. "Well, _excuse me_ for telling you what you already seem to know, Mr. Obvious!" she huffed. "I assume that you have a Pokemon that can Fly you to Cianwood?"

"You assume correctly."

She glared at him in the darkness and, very much on purpose, noisily shut her PokéGear and shifted the blanket around her more properly, with much protest from Chocobo, who was lying at her feet. "You can be such a jack-ass sometimes," she muttered. "Remind me again why I'm helping you?"

"I was wondering the same thing," he said dryly.

She removed the pillow from underneath her head and smacked him with it. "Good _night_, jack-ass."

"Good night, Captain Obvious," he said with a snicker.

Soul lied with her eyes closed, but try as she might, she couldn't will herself to sleep. Was it anticipation of the journey ahead that had her stomach in knots, or was it the thrill of knowing she'd be spending more time with Silver from now on that kept her awake? Her lips curling into a small smile, she took this good thought with her into the land of dreams.

Silver's eyes were wide open. Sleep escaped him, not that he was actively pursuing it. His father...he was going to find him. After all the years that had passed, he was finally going to see him, face-to-face.

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Yep, we're all set."


	4. Chapter 4: Fly

**Note:** *tosses update at the masses* *disappears behind DS again* *mutters to self* Ohoho, Silver, don't be so surly, you know you love me~ CB

* * *

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Four  
_Fly_

"Good morning!" Soul said with a chipper smile as she flopped down on the couch beside Silver, who was just waking up.

With a raised eyebrow and a sleepy glare, Silver scratched his head, his hair very much disheveled, and yawned. "You up already?"

Soul laughed slightly. "Silly, I've been up since five!" she said with a bright smile. "I've already gotten a shower in the PokéCenter's shower room and made a trip to the department store to stock up on supplies for our journey." She indicated several shopping bags at her feet, one of which her Torchic was poking his head in. "I bought the usual Potions, Revives, and Full Heals, as well as a week's worth of food for the Pokemon and for us."

Silver wasn't really paying attention. Despite the fact he was sitting up, his eyes were closed, and it seemed he'd gone back to sleep.

"Hey!" Soul protested, snapping her fingers in front of his face. "Did you want to start searching for your dad today or not?"

"Nn," Silver grunted, eyes still closed.

"Then come on! Get moving! It's already seven and the daylight's burning!" she insisted, grabbing one of his arms and pulling on it in a failed attempt to hoist him off the couch.

"God, I hate morning people," Silver groaned as he stood and stretched. "We could've started later, you know."

"The nurses would have woken you up at eight, anyway," she pointed out with a raised eyebrow. "Now go take advantage of the Center's shower; it might be a while before we can get a nice one again," she said, pushing on his back.

"Yeah, yeah," Silver said with a dismissive wave of his hand as he grabbed his bag and walked away.

Soul sat down on the couch and exhaled triumphantly through her nostrils. It felt good to have everything in order. She smiled to herself. "I was wrong to worry; I think Silver and I will get along fine on this trip. Don't you think so, Choco--ACK!"

Chocobo the Torchic had found a package of cookies in one of the bags and was happily enjoying his prize on the floor.

"You're not supposed to have those now, you silly bird!"

* * *

"All right, can we go now?" Silver asked with a sigh as they stood outside the Center.

Soul was doing a once over to make sure all the supplies were snugly tucked away in her bag. Retrieving a short elastic cord from one of the pockets, she fastened it around the main flap of her bag and tightened it. Nodding to herself, she turned to Silver. "Yep, we're all set."

A flash of light and Silver's Crobat joined their group, flapping it's wings to stay aloft.

Soul retrieved a Pokéball from her pocket and clicked it, saying, "All right then, Chuu, come on out!"

Another white flash, and a Togekiss flew out and then landed beside Soul. Spotting her, the Pokémon let out a happy coo and nuzzled against her arm.

"Aww, it's nice to see you too, Chuu," Soul said with a warm smile, petting the Pokémon. She looked up to catch a raised eyebrow and glare from Silver, and she flustered. "R-Right then," she said, "Chuu, can you take me to Cianwood City, please?"

Chuu nodded and turned so she could climb onto his back.

"It's going to take half the day to get to Cianwood from here," Soul said as she and Silver mounted their respective Pokémon. "I don't suppose you'll want to stop for lunch halfway?"

"Not really," Silver said, adjusting his seating on Crobat's back.

Soul leered at him, her cheeks puffed. "Fine then." She turned to her Togekiss. "All right then, Chuu, to Cianwood, please!"

Chuu let out a crow and then lifted off the ground.

"Hang on, Chocobo!" Soul said with a laugh as she held on to the Fire Pokémon, who cried in fear and huddled into her arms more. They climbed higher, weaving between buildings and houses and away from the buzz of the city, until at last they reached the open sky above them. The rush of wind felt wonderful, and within no time they were out of the city limits with nothing but an ocean of clear, cloudless blue surrounding them. She inhaled the cool air deeply; it was early autumn, and being in the higher altitude made the chill more noticeable.

Chocobo let out a weak chirp from her arms. Soul smiled. "I take it you don't like flying much, eh, Chocobo?" She gave him a squeeze. "Next time I'll let you back in your Pokéball." She glanced over her shoulder at Silver. He was lying against Crobat's back, and he appeared to be sleeping. "Actually, that's not a bad idea," Soul admitted with a yawn. "I've been up all morning."

Reaching for her PokéGear, she turned on the radio. "Hey there, Pokéfans, DJ Ben here!" the announcer on the radio said. "Let's take things down a notch now with a lilting Pokémon Lullaby! Enjoy!"  
"I'm leaving it to you, Chuu," Soul said as she tucked her PokéGear into one of the bag's pockets. "You know the way, don't you?"

Chuu nodded happily.

Yawning, Soul lied down against Chuu's back. "Okay then, just make sure we don't fall off." She snuggled Chocobo, who gladly nuzzled into her chin. As the lullaby lazed onward on the radio, they drifted off into slumber, the sound of the wind whipping in their ears.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Silver...I love you."


	5. Chapter 5: Nightmare

**Note:** Oh, that time again already? No? Oh, then I can wait a few more days. ...Ah, what the heck, I'm feeling generous.

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Five  
_Nightmare_

"Silver?"

They stood on a cliff overlooking the sea, the orange sun sinking into the horizon, casting a warm glow on them. The waves crashed against the cliff side and splashed white foam into the air. Her body was tense, her face flushed with color. He stood a short distance ahead of her, away from the ledge where she stood. When she called his name, he turned.

Soul gulped. As a way to calm her nerves, she removed her white hat and wrung it in her hands. "There's...s-something I've been meaning to tell you..."

Silver raised an eyebrow at her. "Oh? What's that?"

"Silver..." She stopped; the words were caught in her throat. Her heart drummed loudly in her ears. This was it...the moment of truth...she was finally going to say it. Why were her hands so clammy all of a sudden? Her voice felt so weak and small.

Silver let out an impatient sigh and folded his arms. "Some time this year would be nice."

Shutting her eyes tightly, she inhaled. "Silver...I love you."

Stunned silence greeted her, and she filled it with more talking.

"I...I know that must sound strange to you, but...but it's true. I've b-been in love with you for a little while now. It must be weird to you, seems how you've only been rude to me this whole time, but...but deep down, I always felt that maybe you were just rude because you didn't know what other way to act...that maybe...maybe, deep down, you were just lonely, and didn't know how to make friends, so you just lashed out at everyone around you instead." She straightened, and her face tensed. "But...even if that's not the case...even if I'm all wrong...it still doesn't change the fact that I'm in love with you!"

He blinked at her, no words occurring to him. Glancing away, he scratched his head. "I...I don't really know what to say..."

Soul wrung her hat in her hands and stared at the ground. "It's fine...really...you don't have to say anything..."

"...It's funny."

She looked up, surprised.

He grinned. "It's funny that you read me so well."

She gasped. "Wh...What...?"

"You were right," he said with a smirk. "You were right about me. I've...I've been lonely all this time. But you...you've taught me that I don't have to be alone. You see, Soul, I...I love you too."

Visually stunned, she stood there, motionless. A smile slowly spread across her face, and she took a step forward to embrace him. "Silver...I--"

"_Is that what you were expecting me to say?_"

Her eyes widened. Her mouth ajar, she blinked and swallowed to quench her dry throat. "W...Wait...wha...?"

He laughed at her. "You honestly thought I'd actually feel that way about _you?_" he asked with a raised eyebrow. "Listen here, I don't need anyone to feel _sorry_ for me or any of that other bull crap you just spouted. I'm not some lonely, sniveling little boy in the corner who wasn't loved enough and needs some mush-loving, soft-hearted, sappy-spewing pussy like you to come give me a hug. The only thing that your being in love with me proves is that you're some sick form of masochist who gets her jollies off being told what a loser you are, in which case this speech should have you wet in the panties by this point." He turned away. "Get over yourself, seriously. I don't need a savior, and I sure as hell don't need _you_."

She felt drained. Drained of color, drained of warmth, drained of spirit. She took a step backward as tears formed in her eyes. Slipping on a rock, she stumbled and fell off the cliff.

This strange floating sensation...it seemed to take the edge off the pain in her chest. The wind whipped across her body, and she fell, and fell, and fell, and fell...

* * *

"WAKE UP, YOU DUMB ASS!!"

Soul opened her eyes to find an unfamiliar setting. The sky was moving further and further away from her...above her, Silver, visibly panicked, was diving after her on his Crobat. She glanced over her shoulder to find the ocean looming nearer and nearer, and then realization and panic set in.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"_What in the _HELL_ did you think you were doing?!_"


	6. Chapter 6: Dive

**Note:** So then, where were we?

**Edit:** Chapter 5 was a dream, guys. Sorry if that wasn't clear. ._.;

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Six  
_Dive_

What should she do? A million thoughts clouded her brain. Had Chocobo fallen as well, would Silver be able to reach her, where was Chuu--each fear washed over her with a somber chill. She kept her eyes on Silver, who was diving after her with great intensity, and the idea that he wouldn't catch her made her numb.

The whole experience was numbing, to be frank. Falling itself might actually have felt pleasant--the wind rushing across her body and the odd sensation she usually associated with flying--but the dread of hitting the water drained such niceties. From this altitude, she was certain, the water would make no difference.

"Grab on!" Silver yelled, reaching for her as he approached.

She returned the gesture, but he was just out of reach. Their fingers danced around one another at a short distance as they fell in a spiral, and then, with a great rush of relief, Soul clasped her fingers around his strong palms and he guided her in front of him on Crobat's back.

"We have to land--Crobat can't handle this much weight!" he said over the wind, and indeed, the Pokémon was now struggling to stay aloft and losing altitude rapidly.

Soul scanned below them. "There!" she said, pointing.

Without a word, Silver directed the Pokémon downward until they finally landed on the shore of a small island.

Shaken, Soul sat on the sand, trying to slow her pounding heart. Catching her breath a bit, she turned. "Silver, tha--"

"_What in the _HELL_ did you think you were doing?!_"

She flinched in spite of herself. Trying to regroup, she replied in a meek voice, "I-I didn't mean to--"

"Why in the _hell_ did you go to sleep?!" His face was red with rage.

"I just...It was a long trip, and I'd been up all morning, and I--"

"You scared the ever-living _piss_ out of me!" He started to pace a bit. "I'm going along like everything's normal and look up just in time to see you ROLLING OFF YOUR POKÉMON LIKE A DUMB ASS. I swear to God, I think I had heart failure." He rubbed his eyes with his hands. "My _God_, of all the _stupid_..."

Soul stared at her hands in her lap as Silver trailed off into grumbling. "I...I'm sorry."

"You're _damn right_ you're sorry." He turned and scanned the horizon. "Where the hell did we land, anyway?"

"I don't know," Soul said, climbing to her feet. She stared at his back, trying to catch her nerve. Finally, she said it. "Thank-you, Silver. F...For saving me."

He turned to her and paused. "...Yeah, whatever," he said dismissively, turning away. "Ah, look, here comes the other half of this failtastrophe," he commented, gesturing above them.

Following his indication, she spotted (with a sigh of relief) Chuu gliding down from the sky, Chocobo calling from his back. Soul ran to greet them at their landing spot and opened her arms as Chocobo leapt at her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you," she cooed, petting his head. She gave Chuu a reassuring stroke as well. "And don't worry, I'm sure it wasn't your fault."

"Family reunions are nice and all, but did you bother to check your supplies to make sure you didn't lose anything?" Silver said as he was minding his Crobat, who had been recovering from the sudden landing in the shade of a nearby tree.

She hadn't even thought of it. Thankfully, her bag was still around her shoulder, and the elastic band she'd used to secure the flap was still in place. Loosening it, she investigated her belongings, as well as her jeans pockets, where she usually stored her party Pokémon. "Everything's still here, even my PokéGear."

"That's lucky, I guess," Silver said, not really caring either way. He retrieved a Pokéball from his belt and recalled his Pokémon. "Crobat needs to rest a bit before we go on; even if I tried, he would just need to land again before we'd get too far."

Soul nodded. Retrieving Chuu's Pokéball, she turned to him. "You should rest too, Chuu." A red beam shot out of the ball, and in a flash, Chuu was gone. She checked the clock on her PokéGear. "It's almost noon...Wow, I was asleep for a while before I fell." She turned to Silver. "Want to have some lunch in the downtime, then?"

Sighing, he shrugged. "Might as well."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Wow, it's bigger than I thought it was..."


	7. Chapter 7: Whirlpool

**Note:** Back for more, are we? Side-note: Soul's team is _not_ my personal in-game team; I labored a long time trying to figure out what Pokemon she should have. ^^;

* * *

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Seven  
_Whirlpool_

"Your PokéGear has a GPS in it, doesn't it?" Silver asked in between a bite of his sandwich. The two sat below the lone tree on the tiny island, surrounded by their Pokemon, who they'd let out to also enjoy the meal. Silver's Pokémon, Crobat, Magneton, Sneasel, Gengar, Alakazam, and Feraligatr, sat in a scattered formation beside him, eating their meal in stern silence. Soul's Pokémon sat in a much friendlier circle next to their master: Chocobo closest to Soul and then around the circle on his right was Quagsire, Togekiss, Ampharos, and Umbreon. Nearby, a red Gyarados, Soul's sixth Pokemon, was happily swimming around in the ocean, having already finished her meal.

Soul swallowed a bite and then reached for her bag, the sandwich dangling from her mouth. "Nn, the map function can tell you your current location."

"So where are we, then?" he asked, leaning closer to view the screen as Soul tinkered with the device.

A few seconds of fiddling gave them their answer. "We're on one of the Whirl Islands," Soul said, reading the screen. "The map isn't very detailed about them, so I can't tell which one we're on..."

"I've heard about this place," Silver said, taking another bite of his sandwich. "Supposedly, it's hard to access by sea because of the intense whirlpools that surround them, right?"

"That's what I heard," Soul agreed with a nod as she pocketed her PokéGear. "I also heard there's a really powerful Pokémon living on one of the islands, although it's just a rumor..."

"Hard to access and a powerful Pokemon around, huh?" Silver sniggered. "This place has my father written all over it."

"Nn?"

"My father's a ridiculously predictable man in some regards," Silver said, standing and brushing the dirt from his clothes. "In this case, he's attracted to power, particularly when it comes to Pokémon. Not only that, but since he's on the run, a place that's hard to get to by most would call out to someone like him." He started recalling his Pokémon. "I say we take a detour from Cianwood and start looking here. It can't hurt since we're already here, anyway."

"I guess you have a point," Soul admitted, standing as well.

* * *

"Gah, it's so dark in here...You have a light or something?"

"I think so...hang on..."

The sound of items shuffling in a bag echoed off the walls in the darkness and then with a click, Soul's flashlight lit up the dank cavern.

"Wow, it's bigger than I thought it was..." Soul said, shining the beam in all directions.

"Come on, let's get going," Silver said, taking the flashlight from her and leading the way.

The cave was indeed quite large, with many ledges they had to hop down. Water dripped from the ceiling and resounded all around them, like the sound of a faucet leaking. Occasionally they'd come across a wild Pokemon or two, but a leer from Silver usually drove them off ("Wow, Silver, your face works like a Super Repel!" "_...Shut up._").

"How deep do you suppose this place goes?" Soul asked as they climbed down yet another ladder some time later.

"You're asking me like I know?" Silver sighed, shining the light all around them to get a grasp of the new room. Tilting his head slightly, he frowned. "What's that over there...?" He grabbed her hand, adding, "Come on, stick close to me."

Her face flushed as he led her along. He had large hands; they felt so strong and firm compared to hers. Even though she knew it wasn't intentional on his part, she couldn't help but feel a small sense of bliss in holding his hand.

"Your hand is sweaty."

"Ah! S-Sorry!" She pulled it away, embarrassed.

"Anyway, look." He gestured the light down a series of ramps to a small cave entrance at the very bottom of the wall. "I think this is the end of the cave."

Cautiously, they made their way down the ramp. It was quite slick and covered with a slimy film of heavily-concentrated salt water. Despite her best efforts, Soul lost her footing, and she, Silver, and Chocobo slid down the ramp and continued on down several more ramps until they finally crashed in a pile at the very bottom.

With a groan, Silver sat up and sighed, leering at Soul, who was spread lengthwise across his lap on her stomach, Chocobo on top of her back.

"I-I'm sor--"

"_Just get up_," he moaned, shoving her off his lap and climbing to his feet. "Where'd the flashlight go...?"

"Over here," Soul said, finding it against the wall.

Recovering the flashlight from Soul, Silver motioned for her to follow, and they entered the cave.

"It's...a dead end..." Soul said, staring at the curtain of water pouring into the pool surrounding the ledge upon which they stood. She shot a fleeting glance at Silver; he was disappointed, but his face gave very subtle clues.

Clenching his jaw, he turned. "Come on, Soul, let's head back; we've wasted enough time in this stupid cave."

"Yeah," Soul said, turning to follow.

A pair of glowing eyes opened behind the waterfall, and a shadowy silhouette emerged behind the surface. It turned to its two guests as the smaller one added, "I guess there wasn't anything here after all. Not even that legendary Pokemon everyone was talking about."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"_I am no prize of men._"


	8. Chapter 8: Water Veil

**Note:** Another two weeks, another update. Oh, and for those who were wondering/curious, Soul is 13 and Silver is 14. This story takes place roughly two years after the start of Soul's Pokemon journey.

* * *

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Eight  
_Water Veil_

"Come on, Soul, let's get out of here," Silver said, heading for the exit.

Soul nodded and scooped Chocobo into her arms. "...What's the matter, Chocobo? Are you cold?" The bird Pokemon was shaking, staring beyond her shoulder. Puzzled, she turned around and instantly froze. "_Silver!_" she hissed in a deathly whisper.

With a small growl, he turned and joined her side. "What?" She gestured in front of her, and, rolling his eyes, Silver turned. "Wha...What the hell...?"

The eyes behind the waterfall narrowed, and a deep voice-not audible to the ears, but completely in their minds-asked, "_Who are you?_"

Sheer terror. They stood motionless, unable to move, barely able to breathe. Should they say something?

The voice asked more urgently, "_Why have you come here?_"

Swallowing to dampen her throat, Soul replied with a cracking voice, "W...We're sorry to have bothered you. We're...looking for someone, you see, and-"

"_The person you seek is not here. Leave this place now while my judgment is still fair._"

Recoiling a bit, Soul gulped and nodded. "Y-Yes," she said, and she grabbed Silver's arm, adding quietly, "Let's go."

Silver didn't move but instead stared firmly at the silhouette behind the waterfall. Mustering up the gall, he clenched his fists. "If you can sense that who we're looking for is _not_ here, then maybe you can tell us where he _is_."

There was a pause, masked by the sound of rushing water, in which Soul swallowed and looked anxiously between Silver and the creature behind the curtain of water.

"_...I cannot,_" the voice finally replied.

Silver growled angrily. "You can't or you _won't?_" he yelled. "You're supposed to be so powerful, and yet you can't find _one _person?"

The eyes behind the waterfall narrowed, and its voice boomed in their heads, louder than ever. "_I need not meddle in your affairs, human! Who are you to enter my sanctuary and demand divination from me? Mayhaps you're merely poachers, here with delusions of claiming me? I am no prize of men, and you are no longer welcome in my retreat!_"

The sheer amount of psychic power used by the creature to speak to them made Soul's head throb and her nose bleed. She felt herself starting to feint when an eerie glow surrounded her body. She turned to Silver, who was also aglow, and gasped as the two of them started to float upwards.

"_Begone from my sight_," the voice cautioned in a stern tone, "_and never darken my domain again_."

All at once, there was a rush of color. The background melted together until there was nothing but white, and she felt her body dropping in a dizzying spiral. Resisting the overwhelming need to vomit, Soul clutched Chocobo tightly and prayed for their survival.

There was a sudden plummeting sensation in her stomach she more commonly associated with riding an elevator, then a hard slam as her entire body impacted with a hard surface. Then there was nothing.

* * *

Swimming in blackness. Cold. Empty. Nothingness. Solidarity. Alone. Was she coming or going...? Was...Perhaps...Was this death?

"O...S...ul."

She couldn't be dead. She just...She just couldn't be. She was much too young with so much left to do.

"Oi...So...l."

Not to mention her feelings for Silver hadn't been properly addressed. How could she die at a time like this?

"Oi! Soul!"

Her eyes shot open. There was warm sand beneath her. In her arms she held her unconscious Torchic, and the sinking sun set the sky ablaze in shades of reds, pinks, and oranges. Her entire body felt heavy, and she couldn't move, despite her best efforts.

"So, you're finally awake then?" a jovial voice said. "I was wondering when you'd finally come to."

The voice was behind her. She tilted her head upward to try and get a better look.

The boy with dark gray eyes flashed a toothy grin. "Well hi there! Think you can sit up any?"

In her disorientation, it took her a while to realize that she knew him. All at once it came to her, and in a cracking, dry voice, she said, "_...Gold...?_"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Ah, Soul, you really shouldn't touch that."


	9. Chapter 9: Roar Of Time

**Note:** Sorry this is so late. =_=; Had a stressful week and have been planning my daughter's upcoming birthday, so I haven't had time. Again, I apologize. Without much more ado, enjoy Chapter 9.

* * *

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Nine  
Roar Of Time

"So, what happened, you get tired out during your game and decide to take a nap?" the yellow-and-black-capped boy asked as he stood over her and offered her a hand.

Soul gladly took it; she doubted she could lift herself via her own volition. "Wha...? Game? Where are we?"

Gold tilted his head to the side and gave her a puzzled look. "Hmm? You're in the Safari Zone; did you forget?"

Soul looked around them. He was right; she was in the Safari Zone, in what seemed to be the Desert area; nothing but sand and rocky pillars around them for a good mile or two. In the far distance, she could vaguely make out the outline of the perimeter gate. That Pokémon...it had sent them this far?

Gold observed her worryingly and then, with an "Ah!" of realization, he dug in his bag and retrieved a bottle of Fresh Water. "Here, you look like you could use this."

Soul turned and gladly took it. Not until the bottle's mouth touched her lips did she realize how incredibly thirsty she was. She drained half the bottle within in matter of seconds.

"So..." Gold said, rubbing the back of his neck as she continued to drink, "it's been a while since I've seen you. How've you been?"

She slowly stopped drinking and thought for a moment. The realization was visible on her face. "...That's right...We haven't really seen each other since that time three months ago...right?"  
Gold eyed the ground and nodded. "Yeah. Pretty wild, huh?"

* * *

It was always dark in Ilex Forest. Dark and quiet. To be honest, that was what she wanted at this point. She needed to think. Her Typhlosion, Pyro, her faithful companion and starter Pokémon, walked behind her as she traipsed through the forest. He was a source of great comfort to her, during this time when she was so confused.

_"Soul, will you help me?"_

Even remembering the words made her chest grow tight. After defeating Silver at Mt. Moon, Soul couldn't seem to get him out of her mind. In a way, she'd always felt sorry for Silver; it seemed like no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't make any headway in becoming a better trainer. She had recalled him mentioning training at the Dragon's Den in Blackthorn City, so it was there that she had went to look for him.

_"You must be joking! That embarrassment in a costume teamed up with me?"_

They'd been surprised, by Lance and Clair of all people. Silver seemed to have a personal vendetta against Lance, so he challenged him without even thinking. She smiled a bit. Just like him, to be so bull-headed. It was a trait that used to annoy her, but now...now...

She stopped walking as the realization sunk in. She finished her thought; now it was something that endeared him to her. "I..." she whispered, her eyes wide.

"Oooooooooiiiiiiii! Soouuuulllll!" a bright voice broke through the silence.

It startled her so heavily that she nearly fell over, and she reached out and grabbed a nearby object to catch her balance. Turning, she found the origin of the voice: Gold, who was traipsing up to her with a big, toothy grin. His Marill struggled to keep up behind him.

"Ah, Soul, you really shouldn't touch that," Gold said, staring at the edifice she was leaning against.

Soul straightened herself and looked at it as well: it was the shrine she'd passed many times in her journeys through Ilex Forest. She had always felt a strange twinge in her stomach when she crossed paths with it.

"Do you know the stories about this shrine, Soul?" Gold asked in her ear, having sneaked up behind her in her daze.

Soul, startled once again, lightly swung her arm at him. "Stop doing that!" she scolded as he laughed with a wide smile.

"They say that people disappear when you tamper with this shrine," he continued, taking a few steps toward it. Holding his chin in one hand and his elbow in the other in a contemplative gesture, he turned back to her and nodded. "Since you just touched it, it's only natural to assume that something horrible is going to happen to you." He nodded a few more times as if this were a fair assumption.

Soul sighed, her eyebrows tensed. "Oh, really? Well-"

A sudden flash cut her off, and the two of them looked around in amazement as the trees of the forest burst aglow in an eerie, supernatural light. They took a few steps closer together as the trees resonated in a rainbow of hues.

Gold glanced over his shoulder and gasped. "Soul, look!"

Soul did as he indicated and was equally surprised: a glowing figure was emerging from the shrine, but more so in the manner of a ghost, gliding through the roof of the small structure.  
Swallowing in a failed attempt to dampen his dry throat, Gold blinked and said, "...What the hell is tha-"

But he never finished. The creature turned to them at the sound of his voice, let out a cry, and then in a flash, all three-creature and trainers-were gone, leaving their prized partner Pokémon alone in the forest to ponder the great mystery they'd just witnessed.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Hey hey, Soul, it's that emo red-headed guy who stalks you all the time!"


	10. Chapter 10: Destiny Bond

**Note:** Late again; I swear I'm not trying to make it a habit. =,= As an apology, here's a longer-than-usual chapter. c:

* * *

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Ten  
_Destiny Bond_

A spinning sensation, much like riding a merry-go-round spun much too quickly, accompanied with no sound and the nauseating fear and uncertainty in her heart left Soul unable to breathe. Happily, it lasted only a moment, and then she felt the rush of air as they reached their destination. Her body floated in midair for a moment, and then her feet glided down and landed on solid ground once more. Rubbing her eyes, she looked around; where was she?

"_I effing __**told**__ you not to touch it, didn't I?_"

Gold's outburst startled her. Gold seemed to have come along with her, but the usually-cheery boy seemed uncharacteristically the opposite at the moment.

Huffing and folding his arms, he turned his back to her. "You just _had_ to go and upset the forest guardian, _didn't you?_ And then you top it all off with stringing _me_ along with your bad karma!"

"M..._Me?_" Soul said with indignance. "The only reason I _touched_ the shrine is because _you_ startled me!"

"Hey hey _hey_, don't lump me in with you," Gold said, pointing at her. "The only thing I'm guilty of is association."

She very much wanted to respond to that, but was cut off by a very desperate-sounding voice.

"_Father!_"

Blinking, Gold and Soul looked at one another and then crept closer to the ledge upon which a young boy and an older man stood. Soul gasped; the boy was very obviously Silver, but he was much younger in the face and had shorter hair. The other man, however, she didn't recognize.

"Hey hey, Soul, it's that emo red-headed guy who stalks you all the time!" Gold whispered excitedly, tugging on her sleeve.

"_Shhh!_" she hissed, "I can't hear when you're talking!"

The two inched closer so as to eavesdrop more effectively.

"You told me...you were the number one in the world!" Silver spat. "And then you go and lose to some...kid, not much older than me?"

The fire in his eyes was quite visible, a passion she often witnessed when bumping into Silver. She and Gold eyed the man who stood with his back to his son, who said nothing.

Silver watched his father's back for a moment and then exhaled through his nostrils. "...So that's it then? You're going to quit? What are you going to do now?"

Silver's father turned, and Gold let out a small gasp. "I've seen his face on wanted posters before! That's Giovanni, the ex-head of Team Rocket!" he whispered even more frantically.

Soul hushed him again as Giovanni spoke.

"...One must acknowledge one's defeats before he can move on..." he said quietly. "I will go solo...for now..." He clenched his fist and stared at the ground. "So that one day, I'll have the power to form a stronger organization, greater than Team Rocket ever was!"

Silver stared at his father in numbing disbelief, and then, his face tensing and with a voice cracking on the borderline of sobbing, "What aspect of you was ever number one?" he screamed. "Gathering so many only to be defeated by a mere _child!_"

Giovanni sighed wearily and shook his head. "You don't understand," he said. "Putting together the potential of many is how you produce a huge power. That's what an organization is...that's the strength of an organization!" He looked away before continuing. "I failed...to make the best use of my subordinates' potential...!" He turned to his son, and with eyes blazing and a twisted smile, he said, "But one day, my son, you shall witness the revival of me and my Team Rocket!"

Silver clenched his jaw and took a step forward, "You're right, I don't understand you!" he yelled. "You're not making any sense! Why are you doing this, dad?"

Giovanni turned away, sighed, and shook his head. Taking a few steps forward, he turned his head and said over his shoulder, "...One day, you will understand..." And without even a glance of regret, Giovanni walked away from his son toward the exit, and was gone.

"Wow, can you believe that?" Gold said, whistling. "That guy just abandoned his kid like it was nothing...Can you imagine what that must feel like, Soul? ...Soul?"

She wasn't even remotely paying attention to him. Unwavering, her eyes were focused on Silver, who stood there, fists clenching, shoulders trembling, and chest heaving. Her eyebrows rose with concern, and in spite of herself, she took a step forward.

He screamed. Long, loud, frustrated, distraught. "I don't want to understand you, you _bastard!_" he yelled, tears pouring down his face. "I'll never become someone like you-a coward when he's alone and a tyrant when you're in front of other cowards!" He straightened and glared at the gate his father had gone through. "I'll become a strong...I'll become a stronger man all by myself!" He took a step forward and screamed even louder, "_All by myself!_"

Soul studied Silver very carefully, her eyebrows raised, and she finally admitted to herself what that feeling she'd had in Ilex Forest was, the reason she couldn't get Silver out of her mind these past few weeks: she loved him. This tragic, lost, complex boy, who would one day become the proud and stubborn young man she'd come to admire. In that moment, the love she felt filled her up, to the point that its warmth blocked out all else.

"Pst, Soul, look out!"

Gold's warning brought her back to reality in time for Silver, who'd been fleeing in their direction, to crash into her. They pulled apart and made eye contact for a moment, Soul unable to breath.

Silver's eyebrows tensed. "What are you staring, bitch?" he snarled. Shoving her to the ground, he ran off into the distance, headed back to town.

Gold watched the boy disappear from sight, fists on his hips and a scowl on his face. "Jeez, what an asshole," he said, sticking his tongue out in Silver's direction. Helping Soul to her feet, he added, "You okay?"

"I'm fine," Soul said. "It's not the first time it's happened."

Gold raised an eyebrow at the fondness in her tone but decided to dismiss it for more pertinent matters. "So...any idea where we are?"

"Yes," Soul said with a nod. "This is Route 22, just outside of Viridian City." She pointed, adding, "That's where Silver is headed, and his father seems to be headed for Route 26, toward Johto." She swallowed before continuing. "Also, judging by their conversation and how young Silver looked...it seems like we're four years* in the past, right after Red's defeat of Giovanni." (*Counting the time for Soul's Pokemon journey; it's technically over four-and-a-half years[ish].)

Gold's jaw dropped. "But _how?_ How did we get from Ilex Forest in the present to Route 22 _four years_ in the past?"

Folding her arms, Soul sighed. "I'm not sure..."

Gold looked at the sky in thought for a moment. "I wonder..."

"Hm?"

"Well...my grandpa told me once about a Pokémon called Celebi," he said. "Celebi is supposed to have the ability to travel through time, and there've been rumored sightings of one in Ilex Forest in the past, but nothing was ever confirmed. You don't suppose-"

The sentence went unfinished as a flash of light above them caught them off-guard. Through a distortion in space, a small, glowing Pokémon emerged. Looking down at the gaping teenagers, Celebi lifted their bodies into the air, and in a flash, they were gone, leaving the route empty once more.

* * *

"Soul?"

"Hm?" She was startled from her memory and found Gold watching her, concern in his gray eyes. "O-Oh...yes, Gold?"

"You've been staring into space for a good minute or two," Gold said with worry. "You sure you're feeling all right?"

"I...I'm fine; I was just thinking about something." She glanced around, and then a realization caused her eyes to widen.

"...Where's Silver?"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"I guess nothing I say is as important as he is, huh...?"


	11. Chapter 11: Helping Hand

**Note:** Here's a long chapter again; I was half-tempted to split it into two, but I was feeling generous and decided to keep it as I wrote it. Also, you can now check out Follow Me on deviantArt as well; same username as here. :3 Enjoy~

* * *

_Follow Me_  
A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Eleven  
_Helping Hand_

"Come again?"

"Silver," Soul repeated more firmly. "I was traveling with him. Was he not with me?"

"No..." Gold said slowly, watching as she took a few steps in each direction, scanning the horizons. "Did you guys split up or something?"

"No," Soul said impatiently. She gathered Chocobo, who'd been sleeping soundly beside her, into her arms. "Come on, he has to be in the park somewhere."

Gold scratched the back of his head and sighed as she dashed off. "...If you say so," he resigned with a shrug before giving chase.

The Safari Zone was quite a large preserve, separated into six differing climates. Each zone spanned a good mile or two, so searching the entire park, Soul feared, would take longer than they had; the sun was already setting, and the reserve closed about an hour after dark. Keeping this in mind, she pressed on through each area, Gold chatting at her incessantly as a means to pass the time.

"So, whatever happened to Pyro, your Typhlosion?" Gold asked as they trekked through knee-high grass. "Usually he's always with you."

"About a month ago, my mom's house was broken into," Soul said, scanning nearby trees for any flash of red. "Mom managed to scare them off before they could take anything, but it left me paranoid, so I sent Pyro home to keep watch over her."

Gold whistled. "Wow, that's intense...I'm glad your mom didn't get hurt, though."

"Nah, she's pretty tough; I had to beg her to let Pyro stay with her," Soul said. There was an awkward pause, and, wishing to fill it, she asked him a question. "What about your Marill? It's odd to see you without her."

"I think you mean my _Azumarill_," he said, proudly scratching his nose.

"Oh, she evolved?"

"Yep yep, just last week," he said with a grin, his eyes closed. "It was a really intense battle when she evolved too. But, you know the rules, they don't let you walk around with your Pokémon here; she's in her PokéBall on my belt right now." He opened his eyes to see if she was admiring him: she wasn't; Soul had walked a short distance ahead in continuation of her search. He frowned and sighed. "I guess nothing I say is as important as he is, huh...?" Shoving his hands in his pockets, he muttered bitterly, "Why is it the douche bags always get the girl...?"

Their search continued as the sun's last dregs of light sank past the horizon, casting a gloom over everything and making it much more difficult to see, and Soul grew more and more anxious. The park would be closing soon...Maybe it was as she feared, and the Pokémon hadn't sent Silver to the Safari Zone at all. Maybe he'd been sent somewhere else, or worse: he could be dead. This possibility left her numb, so she dismissed it immediately.

They approached the edge of the marsh zone guided only by Gold's flashlight, and a chilling breeze washed over them.

"It's getting late, Soul," Gold said, shining the light in all directions in a haphazard manner. "I'm sure Silver's probably at the front gate, waiting on you."

There was a loud, unnatural buzzing sound, and then a disembodied voice said, "Your Safari Zone park will be closing in five minutes. Please exit toward the main gate, and be sure to return all remaining Safari Balls to the attendants at the front desk. I repeat..."

"See, we should really get going," Gold said as the PA repeated its announcement.

Soul sighed; perhaps she should listen to him. "...Yeah, you're probably right," Soul said quietly.

Gold smiled and nodded, his flashlight held aloft. "Of course I am," he said. "Don't worry so much."

"Yeah..." she said, turning.

Out of the corner of her eye, amongst the weeping tree branches, she caught a small, crimson flash in Gold's flashlight beam just before he moved it away. Whirling around, she grabbed Gold's arm. "Gold, go back!"

"Hmm?"

"There!" Soul said, directing his arm. "No...maybe it was..._look there!_"

Obscured by the tree branches, they could see the outline of a body, draped over a thick branch, a head full of red hair standing out amongst the shadows.

"It's Silver!" Soul said with relief. Trading Chocobo for Gold's flashlight and dropping her bag at her feet, she trudged off through mid-calf-deep, murky water toward the tree.

Gold watched her for a moment, remarking, "Well what do you know?" before plodding through the mire as well.

"Silver!" Soul called as she stood at the base of the tree, shining the light in his face. He was unconscious, and his face was pink from the blood rush of his slightly-declined head. She looked around frantically, contemplating what to do. "Gold!" she called as he approached. "Here, hold the light so I can climb up to him."

"Nah, here, let me do that," Gold disagreed, handing Chocobo back to his master. Grabbing a low-lying limb, he put one foot up and added, "But remind me later to ask you what the hell happened to you two that put him in a tree in the first place."

There was a moment of grunting and creaking branches as Gold climbed, Soul casting the beam through the darkness above her from the ground. After a tense minute or two, Gold reached the upper branch where Silver lay sprawled, his bag hanging from a higher branch.

"Oi, Sleeping Beauty, wakey wakey," Gold said, nudging his shoulders. Silver let out a small groan but didn't stir. Gold sighed irritably. "Look, I'm not kissing you, so you'd better wake the hell up," he grumbled, shaking him more roughly.

Silver moaned again and lifted his head, muttering disorientedly, "...Wha...?"

"Hi there, princess!" Gold said cheerily.

Silver blinked and attempted to sit up. "What in the he-"

"Ah, Silver, be carefu-"

Before either could finish a sentence, Silver slipped off the branch and fell.

"Ahh!" Soul gasped as Silver crunched through branches on his way down. Panicking, she dropped the flashlight and moved into his trajectory. There was a loud thud and splash as their bodies collided, followed by a shriek from Chocobo, who'd been splattered with swamp water.

Squinting and rubbing his eyes, Silver looked up: he was in Soul's arms, the two of them sitting in waist-deep muddy water, her Torchic who'd jumped during the collision struggling to stay atop her hat. He blinked, his face reddening as she stared at him.

Tears welling in her eyes, Soul threw her arms around his shoulders in spite of herself. "I'm so glad you're all right!" she sobbed. "I was so worried you'd been sent somewhere else, or...or..." She choked on the words as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"I'm fine...No need to freak out..." Silver muttered into her shoulder, his face pink.

She pulled away and held him at arm's length, Chocobo protesting from his perch. Wiping her eyes, she smiled. "Crazy day, huh?"

He chuckled, closing his eyes. "No kidding."

"If you two need a longer moment, I can always climb back up for a little while."

Both startled, they turned to find Gold hanging down by one arm like a Mankey, a feline grin on his face, Silver's bag over his shoulder.

Flustering, Soul stood, retrieving Chocobo. "N-No, that's all right," she said, brushing her bangs behind her ear with her spare hand. She then offered it to Silver, and he climbed to his feet, clutching his middle.

"My chest hurts," he muttered.

"Yeah, well, hanging by it on a tree branch for a few hours can do that, I imagine," Gold remarked as he splashed out of the tree and joined them, handing Silver his bag. "How in the hell'd you get up there, anyw-"

He was cut off by a droning sound, followed by a voice, "Attention please: your Safari Zone park is now closed. We thank you for visiting and hope to see you again soon."

"We'd better head to the front gate," Gold said, dusting off his hands on his shirt. "We can talk more then." Looking around for a moment, he scratched his head, puzzled. "Hey, Soul, where'd my flashlight go?"

"Ah..." she said quietly. "I...dropped it to catch Silver..."

"Wha?" Gold exclaimed, his mouth ajar. Searching the tree's base, he retrieved the device, water pouring from its insides. He sighed. "D'ahh, now I have to buy a new one."

"I'm sorry; I'll replace it for you, I promise," Soul apologized.

"It's fine..." Gold said, shaking excess moisture out of it. "Come on, let's go..." He walked ahead, muttering, "Gah, it's gonna take like six washings to get this swamp smell out of my shoes..."

"Do you need help?" Soul asked, extending an unsure hand to Silver, who was gingerly rubbing his chest.

"Nah," Silver said through a groan. "Let's go."

The trio trekked back to the swamp's edge, and gathering their belongings, they began discussing which way it was to the exit. Suddenly, there was a large, booming clunk, followed by an earth shake, causing them to lurch forward, off-balance.

The three exchanged worried glances.

"What the hell was that?"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"You're such a girl!"


	12. Ch 12: Earthquake

**Note:** Here we are, another update. Been looking forward to writing this one, so I hope you enjoy it! c:

**Edit:** Derp, typo fix. Gold, you're not a girl. XD Sorry about that. ^^;;;

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twelve

_Earthquake_

The ground began to rumble beneath them, so much so that the three of them found difficulty in standing.

"What's going on?" Soul asked, frightened.

"Dunno," Gold said. "Earthquake?"

"I don't think so," Silver said, his eyebrows furrowed.

There was another loud thunk, and then the marsh zone they were standing near began to sink into the ground! Soul, who'd been standing nearest the edge, nearly slipped and fell backward, but Silver quickly grabbed her arm and righted her.

"What the _hell_ is going on?" Silver asked, his eyes trembling as they watched the marsh sink below them, exposing a thick, metal platform on which they currently stood.

There wasn't much time to deliberate, for they were cut off by a booming, metallic detaching sound, followed by a clanking of gears as the ground trembled and moved.

"_Come on!_" Silver shouted, and the three took off at a dash.

The shaking ground made it difficult to run, and more than once Soul felt herself toppling over before catching her balance again. Nearing the end of the zone, she glanced up and stopped. "_Look!_" she said, pointing.

The two boys did so and were met by the oddest sight they could've imagined: the next zone they were approaching was moving too, as were other zones they could see in the distance, each plate shifting around like a gigantic slide puzzle.

"What can we do?" Soul asked, frantic. "Everything's moving and we can't find the exit in all this!"

"I say we wait it out," Gold said over all the noise. "Once everything stops, we can find the exit."

"Sitting on our asses might be fine for lazy types like you," Silver said, "but_ I_ for one don't want to risk this zone sinking like the last one and us getting stuck in some mountain to rot!"

"_I'm_ lazy?" Gold remarked, stepping toward him. "_You're_ the one who decided to take a nap in a tree for hours while _Soul and I_ busted our asses trying to _find_ you like some messed-up version of hide-and-seek!"

"Boys..." Soul said quietly with a nervous look in her eyes, watching the two square off.

"It's always complaining with you, isn't it?" Silver spat, clenching his fists. "You're always whining; 'I had to look for you,' 'My flashlight broke,' 'My shoes got wet.' You're such a girl!"

"Yeah, well at least I don't _look_ like one, girly-man! Does that hairstyle of yours come in hetero?"

"_Boys..._" Soul said more urgently.

"You want a go at me?" Silver asked, grabbing Gold's hoodie, readying a fist.

"_Please_, beating a _little girl_ like you would be a wasted effort!"

"Why you-"

"BOYS!"

They turned to her but were interrupted by a violent lurch of the ground, causing all three to face-plant into the dirt. There was a loud click and then all was still, leaving them in silence.

The trio exchanged glances. "It...stopped," Soul said, looking around.

"Do you think...it's safe to go now?" Gold asked.

Another clunk, and their platform began to sink as well. Scrambling to their feet, they ran to the zone's edge, but were too late; the other zone was too high for them to reach. They were trapped.

What could they do? Soul's mind raced. They could try to Fly out, but she didn't know if Gold had transportation, and neither Chuu nor Silver's Crobat could support an extra passenger. She looked up at the starry sky as it drifted slowly away from her; was this the last she'd see of it? Was she doomed to die beneath the mountain?

"MEGANIUM!"

A blur of red flew past her sight, and Gold's Pokéball burst open in the air, releasing his Grass type onto the platform above.

"Meganium, use your vines to get us out of here!" Gold instructed.

Nodding, the Pokémon sent down a thin, green vine from the flower on its neck. Grabbing it, Gold turned to Soul. "You first!"

Agreeing and making sure she had a tight grip on Chocobo, Soul allowed the vine to wrap around her middle a few times before it hoisted her in the air. As she slowly rose upward, she looked down on the two boys, her eyebrows raised with worry.

Reaching the top, she stood and allowed Meganium's vine to unravel. She then watched as the vine went down for a second trip.

"You next," Gold instructed Silver.

Silver's eyebrows raised in surprise. "Why me?" he asked. "Don't you want to go next?"

"I figure this way, if all three of us can't make it, you can't say I left you down here on purpose," Gold said with a wry grin.

He stared at him, thoroughly surprised. The two boys didn't break eye contact, even when Silver was hoisted by Meganium. Joining Soul's side on the surface, Silver turned to look down at Gold, who was several yards below them now and sinking further with each passing second.

Meganium made a third pass for her master, Gold standing on the very tips of his toes to grasp it. The Pokémon reached her limit, but she was still a few feet shy of his hands. Gold, Soul, and Silver each shared a glance that spoke what they couldn't say: Gold was trapped.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Oh shi-"


	13. Ch 13: Metal Sound

**Note:** Writer's block+lazy summer heat x my anniversary last week=late update, and I severely apologize. This chapter was finished ages ago; it was Chapter 14 I was having issues with (which I needed to be done or at least be partially done for the next chapter quote). Oh well, what can you do when you write yourself into a corner? Anyhoo, enjoy.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirteen

_Metal Sound_

"Are you heading out for the night, Mr. Baoba?"

The old man turned to the attendant, putting his brown hat on his gray head. "Yes," he said with a smile. "I'm afraid old men like me get tired earlier and earlier as the years go by; sad result of aging."

"You're not _that_ old, Mr. Baoba," the attendant said with a laugh. "But you can go ahead and head on home; the zone shifting sequence is almost finished, and then we just have to make sure the automatic feeding system is activated before we leave. Shouldn't take more than a few more minutes."

Old man Baoba smiled, one of his gold-capped teeth showing. "I'll leave it to you then...good-night."

"_Mr. Baoba sir!_"

The young man dashed up to him from the hallway, panic-stricken.

"Good gracious, what is it?" Baoba asked, his eyebrows raised in surprise.

Panting, the attendant grabbed Baoba's arm. "You have to come quickly, sir; it's an emergency!"

Baoba followed the urgent man, slightly confused, and they headed back to the dark security room. On the wall were eight monitors: one for each of the six zones, one for outside at the main gate, and one for the underground warehouse where the inactive zones resided. On another wall was a larger screen, and it was on this screen, after a few button presses, that the attendant brought up the surveillance of the Forest zone.

Baoba watched the large screen. "What seems to be the emergency?"

"Give me a second to find them again..." the man said, typing furiously.

The old man furrowed his eyebrows as the screen flickered between the zone's many cameras. Folding his arms and sighing, he tapped his finger on his forearm. Nearly a minute passed, punctuated only by feverish keystrokes and Baoba occasionally clearing his throat.

"Ah, there they are!"

Baoba's eyes widened. "Good Lord...! Didn't you check to make sure the park was cleared before you gave them the okay to start the shuffle sequence?"

"I did, sir! Three times! They must have been in a blind spot!"

Baoba watched the three teenagers; they were arguing. Suddenly, there was a large boom from inside the park—a sound he was quite accustomed to hearing—and then he saw the zone the children were standing in start to sink.

"Well, don't just stand there!" Baoba barked. "Get to the control room and have them stop the shuffle immediately!"

"Yessir!"

The attendant fled the room, leaving Baoba staring desperately at the screen. "Hold on, you three, hold on..."

* * *

"It's no use!" Gold called up to them. "Meganium's vine can't reach that far!"

"We can't just _leave_ you down there!" Soul said, distraught.

"Don't worry about it!" Gold called, cupping a hand around his mouth to increase his volume. "I'm sure this thing'll stop in a minute, and then we can figure out a way to get me out of here!"

The ground shook as the zone hit the bottom, Gold wobbling at bit. Steadying himself, he turned back to them and gave them a thumbs-up. "See? Nothing to worry about!"

There was yet another unhinging sound, and then the plate on the right started moving to cover the hole Gold's plate had made.

Gold's jaw slackened. "Oh shi—"

"Silver, we have to do something!" Soul screamed.

"Way ahead of you!" Silver said, digging in his pocket and retrieving a Pokéball. He was readying to throw it when the machines made a low droning sound, accompanied by a deep rumble as the plate slowed to a stop mid-process. Silence followed, leaving the teens marveling.

An old man's voice boomed over the PA. "Are you three all right?"

Confused, Soul and Silver looked around, bewildered, before Soul cupped her mouth and shouted, "Yes, sir!"

"I'm sending some attendants in to get you; just sit tight!"

"Sure thing!" Gold called up from below. "It's not like I have anywhere else to go or anything!"

* * *

"I must truly apologize," Baoba said, his head hanging in shame as he stood before the trio. "Had we known the three of you were still inside the park, we never would have started the shuffle."

"Eh, no worries," Gold said, shrugging.

They stood in the main hall of the Safari Zone, Soul and Silver draping towels over their wet shoulders, Chocobo preening mud out of his feathers at Soul's feet with much disgust.

"No, no, it truly is a discredit to our security, and I apologize," Baoba disagreed. He gave a slight chuckle. "I suppose when the shuffle started, it gave you all quite a shock, eh?" When they nodded, he laughed. "My Safari Zone is customizable, you see. Took me years to build it, after I had a dream about a safari experience that was different every time you visited it. There are twelve types of zones, each set on vast, thick metal panels. These panels can slide and sink—but I suppose you already surmised that much—and inactive plates go under the mountain to our warehouse, where the Pokémon are fed and kept comfortable until their return to the surface in a few day's time. Every night, after the park closes, we shuffle the zones, which is what you were all stuck in the middle of, you see."

"I'd heard about it being different every day," Gold said, "but I had no idea it was that intense; wow..."

"I have to ask, though..." Baoba said, troubled. "The three of you look like fairly capable trainers...did it never occur to you to _Fly_ to safety?"

"Well, we did, but only after some panicking, " Soul admitted, embarrassed.

Gold clapped his forehead. "I completely forgot!" he gasped, digging in his pocket and retrieving an Ultra Ball. "I had my Skarmory with me; we could've flown me out with no trouble!" He looked at the ceiling in thought. "I wonder why I didn't do that in the first place, instead of using Meganium; would've been a lot smarter, huh?"

Soul was blinking in disbelief while Silver covered his eyes with his hands, shaking his head.

Baoba paused and then chortled merrily. "I suppose you can chock that one up to panic, my boy," he said, clapping Gold's shoulder. "At any rate, let me apologize to you all properly by having you as guests tonight at my home. Unless you have other sleeping arrangements..."

Soul shook her head. "We don't, but we couldn't impose—"

"Nonsense!" Baoba said with a dismissive wave. "It's the least I can do after all the trouble I've caused you. Now, come with me back to the city; I'm sure my chef has a fine meal waiting for us." And with a wave over his shoulder, he ushered all three of them out the door.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Real men don't talk to other men when they're naked, _idiot_."


	14. Chapter 14: Sing

**Note:** As if to add an extra, "I'm sorry," for being late last time, here's the following update a few days early. Hope you enjoy it. We're finally finishing the first day; it only took 10 chapters...^^;

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Fourteen

_Sing_

The walk through Route 47 was long, although Soul barely noticed, as their conversations with Baoba passed the time rather effectively. Figuring it best that they bend the truth slightly, Soul explained how they'd become separated from one another and had just regrouped when the Safari Zone closed. The rest of the way, Gold explained the battle in which is Azumarril, who he freed from her Pokéball, evolved. He recounted the occasion passionately, with lots of arm movements and simulated sound effects. Half listening, Soul found herself glancing at Silver a lot, who walked silently beside her, staring at the ocean. She raised her eyebrows, troubled.

"Ah, here we are!" Baoba said as they arrived at the gate of a large house on the very outskirts of Cianwood. The house was quite luxurious-looking and was definitely bigger than any house Soul had ever seen. They walked up the main path, past a small fountain and rows of groomed hedges and entered the front door. The entry hall was equally spacious as the house itself, and it loaned a grandiose sort of feeling, the high ceilings and wide staircase in front of them somewhat demanding a sense of awe and respect. Apparently the Safari Zone was doing quite well.

Over dinner, Mr. Baoba explained the complex process of how his staff decided the daily layout changes—they were partly based on equal rotation but also based on consumer feedback. When pressed by their host, each rattled off their favorite Zone so as to be polite. Gold ate rather heartily, but Silver ate quietly without saying much, preoccupied with his thoughts.

After dinner, Baoba's butler directed them to a large guest room where they were to sleep, three thickly-cushioned futons already laid out for them.

"I don't know about you two," Gold said patting his shoulder with his fist in a massaging manner, "but I could use a bath to get this swamp stink off of me."

"Wasn't going to say anything, but since you already did..." Silver jeered from behind him as he set down his bag.

Gold shot him a piercing glare over his shoulder and muttered, "_You're_ one to talk; _you_ were practically _swimming_ in it."

Before this had a chance to spiral into an argument, Soul chimed in, "A bath would be lovely; we can all take turns."

"Oh, no, the guest bath is large enough that all three of you should be able to bathe at the same time," the butler said. "And it's segregated into men's and women's...this way..."

After a minute of bathing supply gathering and a short wave to Chocobo, who settled in the center of the futon that was to be his master's to take a nap, Soul and the boys followed the attendant down a hall to two doorways, each covered by a thick curtain that ended around the height of Soul's knees, each marked with its proper gender. With a slight nod to Soul, Silver disappeared behind the men's curtain with Gold, leaving Soul to take the doorway on the left.

The bath was a wide, fairly-long room split into the three sections: at the entrance, there were several cubbyholes, intended for clothes, Soul surmised; then next was the shower room, with three shower stalls lined along the right wall, each with its own curtain, and a giant wall-length mirror on the parallel wall; and at the very back of the room was a rectangular bath large enough that she could probably swim a short lap from one end to the other, a tile mosaic of Ecruteak City at sunset on the back wall, a giant bird flying over a rainbow at the very top. She stood in awe for a moment, soaking in the thought that she had such fanciness all to herself, and then she started removing her clothes. Emerging nude into the cold air, she shivered as she stepped up into the tiled shower room and entered one of the stalls.

The warm water streaming down her body was a great comfort, and after enjoying its soothing embrace for a short moment, she set to the menial tasks of cleansing herself. As a means to pass the time, she hummed to herself, and eventually began singing in earnest, enjoying the privacy of her lonely shower.

"Hey, Silver, do you hear that?" Gold asked, his eyes closed as shampoo drizzled down his face. When there was no response, he continued. "It sounds like singing! I wonder..." He pressed his ear to the cool shower wall. "I think Soul is singing on the other side of the wall." He laughed. "Hey, Silver, do you hear thi—"

"Real men don't talk to other men when they're naked, _idiot_," a harsh voice from the next stall said. This seemed to suffice, because Gold said no more.

Silver stood motionless in the stream of hot water, steam rising above him in curls and dissipating in the cooler air. In spite of himself, he felt himself leaning, until his ear and shoulder were pressed to the wall, and he strained his ears to mull out the water sounds. He'd heard the song occasionally when he passed through shopping centers and busy cities; he wondered for a moment if it was popular. Usually, he didn't much care for it, but...it suited Soul's sweet soprano so well...he couldn't unglue himself from the wall. Closing his eyes, he stood transfixed, enjoying the concert she was unknowingly performing, the corner of his mouth twitching. For a brief second, he saw a flash of memory: a faceless woman with flowing red hair and a gentle song accompanied by a tinkling music box.

He was shaken from his daze as the song ended and the squeak of knobs told him Soul had finished her shower. Righting himself, he let the water warm the chilled left side of his body, lost in thoughts of someone he'd long since forgotten; it wasn't like him to dwell on the dead.

* * *

Night crept swiftly upon them, and after explaining to Gold the whole story of how Silver wound up in a tree ("Wow, you always have the best adventures, Soul; I'm so jealous!"), they all sleepily crawled under the blankets and settled into the darkness. Soul's futon was above the two boys', and she lay on her back, staring at the ceiling.

"_Get over yourself, seriously. I don't need a savior, and I sure as hell don't need __**you**__._"

The words from her dream earlier in the day filled her chest with ice. She could picture perfectly the look of snide contempt on his face, and remembering it made her numb. What if this was the reaction she received when she finally decided to confess for real? Could she handle hearing those words twice? The possibility that she could be rejected was a thought she always kept at arm's-length; it was a strong possibility, but one she preferred to ignore for her own sanity. After all, Silver wasn't exactly the nicest person in the world, she knew. It was true that his attitude toward her had changed drastically since the day she met him, but was this because of love...or respect? She clapped her hands over her face and whispered, "I just don't know...!" to herself in exasperation.

A loud snore rang out from Gold's futon, distracting her, and with a sigh, she rolled onto her side and decided not to dwell on it for now, because it made her head throb and her chest ache.

"You still awake?"

The soft whisper came from Silver's futon directly across from hers, and she looked up to find him laying on his stomach with his arms folded in front of him, staring at her. She took up this position as well and rested her chin on her arm, giving him her full attention.

"Hey," he muttered in greeting.

"Hey," she replied simply.

They stared at each other in the darkness for a moment before he spoke. "Look...about today..." He looked at the side wall. "In the cave...I was acting like a real ass, and I nearly got us both killed. We're just lucky we survived." He inhaled and faced her. "So...I'm..._sorry_. I'm sorry I put you in danger. I..." He trailed off and turned his head to the wall again, pretending there was something interesting upon it.

A warmth started in her chest and rushed over her entire body, and she couldn't conceal the smile that now played across her face. "It's okay," she said, shaking her head. "You just really wanted some information on your father; it's not like you _meant_ for it to happen."

"Yeah..." he muttered, not sounding so reassured.

"Is...Is this what's been bothering you all evening?"

He stared at her, and she was sure if they had been in a well-lit room, his face would have matched his hair.

"I-I didn't mean to notice; it's just, you were quieter than usual..." she justified, brushing her hair behind her ear and looking away. She sat up slightly. "But it's okay, because I'm not mad, so...don't worry about it." She reached out and touched his hand. "Okay?"

After a moment of silence, he nodded. He sat up to reposition himself, adding, "You're too nice, you know?"

She smiled wider. "Well, I—"

"How a pushover like you became the Champion, I'll never know," he muttered with a sly grin. He blocked the expected pillow she swung at him with his arm.

"Tomorrow we're searching Route 47 for your dad," Soul said, replacing her pillow and getting comfortable. "Today was pretty much a waste in that regard..."

"Right, right..."

They bid each other good night and then rolled over into their own preferred sleeping positions. As she drew the comforter around shoulders, Soul couldn't help but grin; she wouldn't think about the dream ever again.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Then I guess this is where I leave you."


	15. Chapter 15: Pickup

**Notes:** Not much to say this week; just enjoy the chapter. :3 Oh, and for extra notes/doodles for Follow Me, look me up on deviantArt under the same name, 'kay? ;D

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Fifteen

_Pickup_

"So you're off to Kanto?"

Gold was adjusting the shoulder strap of his sling backpack when she addressed him. He turned to Soul. "Yep, I'm taking the ferry to Olivine, and then it's off on another boat to Kanto," he said with a nod. "A good friend of mine lives in Kanto, so I'm going to pay them a visit."

They were walking down the road leading from Baoba's mansion, who they'd thanked for allowing them to stay the night. Chocobo trotted along beside Soul, chirping happily at Gold's Azumarill, who replied with equal cheerfulness, the two apparently wrapped in merry conversation.

"What about you two? Any plans?" Gold asked, his hands behind his head as he turned to them.

With a knowing glance at Silver, Soul replied, "We have some things to do here in Cianwood, so we'll be here a few days." They'd decided to leave their search for Giovanni out of their explanation yesterday; Gold was a bit of a chatterer, and despite the fact she knew he meant well, Soul worried he might blab that they were searching for a wanted criminal to the wrong person.

"Then I guess this is where I leave you," Gold said, stepping ahead and turning to face them. They had reached the city limits of Cianwood. "Take care, Soul, and give me a call every now and again, huh?"

Soul smiled and nodded. "Sure thing," she said with a laugh.

Gold turned to her Torchic and beamed. "I hope you grow up big and strong, Chocobo!" he said, and his grin widened when the Pokémon chirruped in approval. Finally, he rounded on Silver, and his smile fell slightly. But then, he seemed to change his mind, and he grinned wider than before and said, "Always a pleasure to see you, Sil-Sil!"

Every inch of Silver's body prickled with rage. He clenched his fists and growled, "I've _told_ you not to call—"

"Oh, come on, Sil-Sil, lighten up!" Gold said jovially, clapping his shoulder but being quick to retract it in case Silver decided to bite him, which he appeared liable to do. He turned to Soul, adding, "If Sil-Sil gives you any problems, be sure to call me, all right? _Sil-Sil_— he was putting more and more emphasis on the name with each iteration—"tends to be a cranky guy, and I don't want him hurting your feelings, okay?" He turned back to Silver, who looked murderous, and beamed. "But you wouldn't be mean to Soul, now would you, _Sil-Sil?_"

Soul suppressed a laugh with much difficulty; she thought the nickname was rather adorable, which is why she supposed it bothered Silver so much. She wondered why Gold was trying so fervently to irk him...?

Satisfied, Gold waved and said, "So long!" before heading off at a run, his Azumarill tottering off behind him. When he was several tens of feet away, he turned back to yell, "_Bye-bye, __**Sil-Sil!**_" at the top of his lungs before disappearing into the city, his Azumarill in tow.

Silver stood, clenching and unclenching his fists as Soul tried desperately to hide the grin that refused to leave her face. After a minute of snarling under his breath, he turned and muttered, "Let's get started."

* * *

They spent the next few days scouring every corner of Cianwood Island, from the city itself to the alcoves and recesses of Route 47. Much more than Soul had anticipated of the Route was occupied by the Safari Zone and its many underground caverns. Each day, they returned to the Pokémon Center feeling more sore and exhausted than the day previous, and Soul realized Silver was starting to notice, as she was, the sheer impossibility of their quest. It was all she could do to stay positive and keep him from slumping into depression.

"This is pointless," Silver said on the fourth day as he rode behind Soul on her red Gyarados through the waters at the base of the cliff-side. "I don't know what I was thinking, trying to find my dad...He could be anywhere in the whole _world_ and could be moving every _day!_ It was stupid and arrogant to think we could track him down."

Soul bit her lip; his thoughts had merit (she herself had been thinking them privately), but she couldn't let him derail their whole journey just because he was frustrated. She adopted an airy tone. "Wow, not even a week, and you're already talking about quitting," she said. "And here I thought you were more committed than that."

This must have stung, because his grumbling ceased, which was the desired effect, so she smiled with satisfaction. After a few minutes of silent Surfing, they came to the mouth of a large waterfall and a steep cliff wall: the end of the Route via water.

"Rosa, stop here," Soul instructed, and the Gyarados paused several yards from the roaring fall. Retrieving a Pokéball from her pocket, she clicked it and tossed it in the air. The ball burst open with a flash of light, and her Quagsire emerged, diving into the water and then resurfacing, looking delighted. "Bog," she instructed, and the Quagsire looked up attentively, "swim behind the waterfall and check for a cave or an opening of some kind."

Nodding, Bog dove underwater and, in less than a minute, resurfaced.

"Well? Is there something there?" When Bog nodded, she glanced over her shoulder with an encouraging smile, but Silver was already sulking with a bored scowl. Frowning, Soul guided Rosa to the side of the waterfall, where she stretched out her neck for the two humans to dismount. "You and Bog can go play for now, but come back in five minutes to get us, okay?"

Rosa smiled cheerfully—it didn't suit her gruesome features—and then plodded off to swim in the afternoon sunshine with Bog.

Digging in her bag, Soul took out a flashlight and clicked it on as Silver shoved his hands in his pockets and sighed. They were in a small alcove with barely enough room for three people to stand side-by-side, but it went a good ten feet into the cliff, as if someone had taken a large, circular scoop out of the mountain. It, however, did not have an occupant, nor did it appear to have ever had one. As Soul took a few steps inside, casting the light in all directions, Silver sighed more heavily.

"There's nothing here, Soul," he said gloomily, staring at the down-pouring water. "We should head back to town and make our way to Olivine; I'm tired of being on this stupid island."

She was about to agree with him when a glint in the flashlight beam distracted her. Frowning curiously, she approached the back of the cave. The object she had spotted had moss grown all around it, and it took a fair amount of tugging to extract it. As she stood and wiped it clean, her eyes widened. "Silver! Look at this!"

He cocked an eyebrow as she approached him, wiping something on her sleeve. She handed him the flashlight, and he shone it on her hand. His jaw fell.

Pinched between her fingers was a small gold lapel pin, the front embossed with a glossy red paint. It was shaped like a capital "R."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Well, well, well, look who it is!"


	16. Chapter 16: Assurance

**Note:** Sorry for the slight lateness; been a busy week. Hope you enjoy the update~

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Sixteen

_Assurance_

Neither of them spoke for the space of a minute. Their eyes remained glued to the pin, and then Silver took it from Soul when she offered it to him. He turned it over in his hand, feeling the chips and scratches in the supple metal. Shining the light more closely, he scrutinized it more carefully. At the base of the R's slanted leg was a tiny letter "G," engraved into the golden back.

"...It was his..." was all he could muster to say.

Soul stood breathless, her mind atwitter. They had found a clue! Just when they were starting to feel hopeless, a small trace of Giovanni found its way to them. She watched Silver expectantly, hoping to see some trace of a smile, a bit of eagerness in his eyes. She unfortunately received no such indication; Silver continued to look sincere, pondering.

"Where did you find this?" he asked quietly.

"Here," she said, taking his arm and directing him to the back of the cave. "The moss had grown all around it, and it was stuck in there pretty good."

Silver stroked his chin slightly and paced, not speaking. After a minute of this, he finally spoke in a quiet voice. "Best case scenario...this has been here maybe a year, six months at the least..." He paced some more. "Worst case scenario, it's been here even longer, years and years, which makes us finding this irrelevant." He stopped and turned to her; in the low-lit cave, she could just barely make out troubled facial features. "But which is it...?"

Soul's brain whirred, and then she brightened. "Mr. Baoba! The night we stayed at his mansion, at dinner...he said the Safari Zone is a little over a year-and-a-half old but the construction for it began over a year before it opened—over two years ago. What if—" her voice was growing steadily more excited—"What if your father was hiding out here two years ago, but when the construction started, he left so he wouldn't be discovered?"

There was a small pause, and then in a rush, Silver was on top of her, hugging her tightly. "It's brilliant," he said into her shoulder. He pulled away and held her at arm's-length, shaking her. "That makes perfect sense; it's true, it's a long shot, but...thinking about it, it seems to fit." He turned around with new resolve, holding the pin in the sunlight that sneaked through the water curtain. "This is the perfect place for him to hideout for a while; it's removed enough from people that he wouldn't be stumbled upon easily, but not so far away that he couldn't go to town for supplies when he needed to." He seemed to notice his sudden, uncharacteristic gusto, because he coughed and turned, pocketing the pin. "R-Right, so...this doesn't tell us much about his _current_ location, but it _does_ give us insight into where he's _been_, which is the first step, right?...Right?"

Soul was still reeling from the sudden burst of affection, blessing the darkness for concealing her crimson cheeks. She brushed her hair behind her ear and nodded, adding a small, affirmative grunt.

"Right..." Silver said, nodding. "In any case, let's get the hell off this island; I'm tired of being here, and there's nothing keeping us here, anyway."

"Okay," Soul said, nodding as well.

* * *

The Surfing trip from Cianwood was much more pleasant since they had something positive to discuss. It took roughly thirty minutes extra to Surf back to the mainland rather than to Fly (which took about an hour usually), but Silver mentioned something about not wanting a repeat and if she fell he was letting her ass drown; she hit him. And since the ferry had already made its last run for the day...they were stuck Surfing. Flagged by Bog and Silver's Feraligatr, both released for an enjoyable swim, they glided through the rough waves on Rosa with little difficulty. They reached the shores of Route 40 just as dusk was starting to overtake the day.

"We'll need to find a place to stay," Silver said. "Do you want to make camp here on the beach or head for the Center in Olivine?"

"Actually, the Battle Frontier's Center is closer," Soul said, indicating the building at the far north end of the beach. "We can stay there tonight. Besides," she added, regarding some brooding clouds on the horizon, "it looks like rain, anyhow."

They trudged up the beach, Chocobo, finally released from his Pokéball after all the water antics of the day, toppling over a few times on the uneven ground. Soul strolled a few strides ahead of her companions, checking her bag and regarding their supplies crossly. She'd have to make a stop at the PokéMart first thing in the morning; their food stocks were getting pitifully low. She was so preoccupied with digging a notepad out to formulate a list that she didn't see the boy exiting the Frontier entrance at a blistering pace.

THUD! Soul fell to the ground and landed on her butt, Poké Balls and Max Repels rolling out onto the pavement, at least one Hyper Potion smashing on the ground in a colorful puddle of medicine and shattered glass. Silver and Chocobo came running to her side as she looked up at the boy, who stood before her looking slightly flummoxed.

"Whoa, sorry about that," the blond boy said, smoothing his ruffled hair into its usual airy spikes. "Guess I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Damnit, boy, haven't I told you not to run ahead of me like that?" an agitated voice called from within. The boy stepped aside so a man in a long, sweeping green coat could emerge, regarding the lad sternly. The man was blond like the younger trainer, and they bore some resemblance to one another. "Tch, did you run into someone again?" he muttered with a scolding suck of air through his teeth. Glancing down at Soul, the man's face lightened, and he grinned broadly. "Well, well, well, look who it is! Fancy seeing you again!"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Video games are a waste of time and energy."


	17. Chapter 17: Leaf Storm

Note: In honor of Black and White's Japanese release, here's Chapter 17, an extra long chapter just to celebrate. c: Enjoy!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Seventeen

_Leaf Storm_

Chocobo chirped angrily at the boy in the orange-and-white-striped, long-sleeved shirt, his talons planted firmly in the sand in front of his master, whom he seemed to be defending. The older man with feathery blond hair regarded the Pokémon with a chuckle.

"Looks like you've made yourself an enemy, Barry," the man said with a laugh, clapping the boy's shoulder. He turned to Soul and offered her a hand. "This little one yours, Soul?"

"Yeah," Soul said, accepting his assistance.

"Here," Silver, who'd joined her side, said, handing her the stray items from her bag that he'd collected.

"Ah! Thank-you, Silver..." There was a heavy pause while she replaced her items, during which there was a shuffling of feet a few coughs exchanged. When she'd finished, she glanced around, and she realized everyone was waiting to see who should start the introductions first. "Right, sorry; this is my friend, Silver, and Silver, this is Palmer, the Tower Tycoon." She turned to the boy, who looked to be around her age, and smiled weakly. "And I'm afraid I don't know who you are."

"This is my son, Barry," Palmer said, putting an arm around Barry's shoulders. "He's here visiting from Sinnoh." He nudged the boy with his elbow, adding, "Apologize to Soul for knocking her over."

"I already did...!" he complained, but with a stern glare from his father, he sighed and puffed his lips sulkily. "Right, sorry about that," Barry said in dull tone. "I don't usually look where I'm going." This sounded incredibly rehearsed and unfeeling, something Palmer took note of, because he slapped the boy on the back of the head, muttering something that sounded like, "Smart ass."

"Really, it's okay; I wasn't looking, either," Soul said, shaking her head.

"So, Soul, were you coming for a rematch?" Palmer asked hopefully. "I've been itching to have another go."

"Rematch?" Silver asked with mild interest.

Soul chuckled, saying, "About four months ago, I got a streak in the Battle Tower that was long enough to warrant a match with Palmer. But," she said with a grin," I lost."

"But only just, didn't you!" Palmer said with a hearty laugh. "Never sweated so much during a match before, I can tell you that! Got my blood pumping. I was really hoping you'd come back before I left Johto."

Soul's eyebrows raised. "You're leaving? For how long?"

Palmer opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by a low, booming rumble from the storm in the distance. "Hmm, looks like we won't be picking them up after all, Barry," he said with a frown to his son. "If we headed toward Olivine now, we'd get caught up in all this mess that's coming our way. I'll phone the dock to leave a message for them to stay at the Olivine Center for the night." He turned to Silver and Soul. "And what about you two? Have a dry place for the night?'

"We were headed to the Frontier Center just now," Soul said with a nod.

"'Fraid that's going to be a problem," Palmer said, shaking his head. "When Barry and I passed it, they were turning away trainers left and right; said they were overcapacity with people trying to ride out the storm." Palmer paused as the two teens exchanged troubled glances, and then he grinned merrily. "So I guess you'll have to come stay with Barry and me in the Tower!"

"Eh? No, we really couldn't—"

"_Nonsense!_ You expect me to let you stick it out here on the beach? You'd all drown, or catch a death of cold. Now, come on, both of you. Ah—excuse me, all_ three_ of you," he corrected when Chocobo gave him a reproachful crow.

* * *

"My apartment's at the very top of the Battle Tower," Palmer explained as they all boarded the elevator. "This lift is private and is pretty much the front door to the place. You should count yourself lucky; not many trainers get to see the Tycoon Suite." The four piled into the elevator as Palmer pressed the up button on the console. "Hang on," he added as the elevator lurched and slowly started its ascent.

"So, how long will you be gone, Palmer?" Soul asked. "I was planning on re-challenging you when I had some spare time..."

Palmer sighed and leaned against the handrail. "I'm afraid the only way you'll be able to do that is if you come visit me in Sinnoh. Y'see, I'm resigning as the Johto Tower Tycoon." Soul couldn't conceal her surprised gasp, and Palmer chuckled. "Don't worry; I had this planned from the beginning. I closed the Sinnoh Battle Tower for a year to come help establish the Frontier here in Johto. But now that that's settled, it's time for me to head home, back to Sinnoh; my wife's been giving me hell for being gone so long..." He grinned fondly. "Barry and I were headed to pick up my replacement in Olivine when we ran into you—Ah, here we are."

They'd reached the top floor, and the small box grumbled to a stop. There was a small chime, and the doors slid open.

Never in her life had Soul seen such a spacious, splendid apartment. The main room was massive and wide, broken into smaller areas by furniture: a dining room set on the opposite side of the room from the elevator, a living area with a wall-mounted flatscreen sectioned off by two emerald curved couches, and a kitchen on the right of the entrance, with a small island in the center and a bar-stool counter with overhead lights. Leading off from the main room was a large hallway, for the master bedroom, two guest rooms, and the toilet and bath. More impressive than the apartment itself was the view: a glass doorway, the plastic curtain-blades drawn open, made up the living room's outer wall, a small balcony the length of the Tower outside it, and beyond that, a view of the entire Battle Frontier and onward to the ocean. If she strained her eyes, Soul could just make out one of the Whirl Islands, a small speck on the gloomy, stormy horizon. Even Silver had to stop for a moment and look around the room in awe.

"Nice, eh?" Palmer said with a bemused grin, acknowledging their bewilderment. "I had them make it this nice on purpose; my suite back in Sinnoh isn't nearly as fancy as this one. I'm thinking when I get back it'll be time for a remodel..." He laughed. "Anyway, I need to make a phone call, so you guys get settled in the living room for now, and after I contact the Olivine docks, I'll see if the pizza place will make a delivery before it gets too stormy."

They made themselves comfortable on the arced couches as Palmer entered the kitchen, Chocobo choosing a squashy beanbag in the center of the area to snuggle into with a contented chirp. Barry was running his finger over DVD cases, looking for something to watch, Soul supposed. It wasn't until he turned with his choice that she realized it wasn't DVDs he'd been looking at, but video games.

"Wanna play?" he asked with a broad grin. He was holding a white game case with several characters plastered on the front. Soul recognized the tell-tale format of a fighting game, but from a distance she could only make out the word, "Brawl" on the cover...

"Video games are a waste of time and energy," Silver said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

Barry frowned and turned to Soul. "How about you?"

"I'm no good at fighting games," she said honestly. "RPGs are more my thing."

Barry flopped into a beanbag—Chocobo's beanbag, to be precise, and the small Pokémon screeched in anger before fluttering over to settle in Soul's lap where it was safer—and sighed huffily. "Jeez, you guys are no fun," he muttered. After a moment of quick contemplation, a grin twisted on his lips, and he added in a casual tone, "Not that it would've mattered, anyway; I totally would've kicked your butts. You both look like you wouldn't be much of a challenge." Both trainers' shoulders went rigid as the boy continued on. "I mean, sure, it's just a video game, but honestly, to turn down a challenge so quickly...you guys must both be wimps or something." He shrugged with a smug smile, his eyes closed, unaware of the glinting glares focused on the back of his head and the veritable auras of death in the air. "Of course, I can understand why you'd hesitate when faced with an opponent like me—"

"_Shut the hell up and give me a controller_," Soul and Silver said in unison, their eyes overcast by angry shadows and their arms extended rigidly.

* * *

"What do you mean she already left?" Palmer asked the person on the other end of the phone line as he stood in the kitchen, drumming his fingers on the island's countertop. There was a roar from the living room, and he growled irritably. "Hang on," he said, and then, cupping the receiver, he yelled, "Hey, keep it _down_ in there!"

The shouting had been from the three teens, Barry's a moan of unfair defeat and Soul and Silver's a bellow of triumphant victory. The two exchanged a high-five, serious expressions on their faces, as Barry sulked in his beanbag chair.

"That's not fair; you guys tag-teamed me!" he griped.

"Hey, you're the one who said you could take us both," Soul said unsympathetically.

"Yeah, not at the same time, though! That's called cheating!"

"No, that's called strategy."

"If it were me, I'd be pretty embarrassed," Silver said with his typical, stern expression as he aimlessly pressed buttons on his controller, "considering I lost to a bunch of novices at a game I'm supposedly good at." A smile twitched on his lips. "Guess that makes _you_ the wimp."

Barry growled through his teeth, folded his arms in a huff, and sulked, thoroughly flustered.

"Let's go again, let's go again!" Soul cheered, shaking Silver's shoulder eagerly.

"Yeah, yeah, one more round..." he said with a small grin.

After the following round was over (Soul emerging the victor), Palmer came to join them, flopping on the other couch near the glass doors. "Well, I have some good news and some...somewhat troubling news," he said, and the three slackened their controllers to turn to him. "The good news is, the pizza place said they'd deliver even in the rain, so we should have food in about thirty minutes. The somewhat troubling news is...my replacement left the docks before I could get my message to her. So she's on her way here, and I imagine she's probably caught in that storm right about now...I hope she changes her mind and heads back to Olivine..." He stared out at the black sky, troubled. Sighing, he sat up properly and brightened. "So then, how about you toss your old man a controller and let me have a go too, Barry?"

There was another intense round of battling and trash-talking, and Palmer emerged the victor, Silver very narrowly taking second place after their sudden death showdown. They were getting ready to start another bout when the intercom on the elevator wall started buzzing.

"Ah, that's probably them saying the pizza is here; you can ignore it," Palmer said with a wag of his hand. "Come on, one more round before food gets here."

No more than a few minutes later, when they were deep in the middle of their current round, the elevator chimed, signaling their visitor had arrived.

"Come on in, I'll be with you in a minute!" Palmer said, not tearing his eyes away from the screen for a second as the elevator doors opened.

White and red sneakers stepped onto the carpet, the owner's long brown hair dripping onto the floor. The light blue socks clung damply to the thin, smooth legs, and black spandex-like bike shorts peaked out from underneath the red pleated miniskirt. Her light blue, thinly-strapped tank top clung tightly to her body and chest, the thin strap of the black undershirt falling down on one of her shoulders, touching the top of the long, fingerless gloves that covered most of her arms and matched the color of her shirt. She adjusted the white hat with the red Pokéball insignia as she walked over and stood behind the couch where Palmer was seated, the four too entwined in their match to notice her presence.

A rush of emotion and a whoop of joy accompanied Barry's first victory, and it was at this moment, the girl decided it was appropriate to speak.

"Cool, a fighting game! Can I have next out?"

The four turned to her, startled. Most noticeable about her, other than her damp clothes and hair, was the curious green Pokémon perched on her shoulders, its tail wrapped around her to support itself. Soul had never seen anything quite like it: it looked a bit like a snake, but...since when did snakes have arms and legs?

* * *

**Selected quote for the next chapter:**

"His story begins in the fifth generation..."


	18. Chapter 18: Leaf Tornado

**Note:** Please forgive this update's lateness; writer's block + video game addiction bit me in the butt again...Incidentally, in case there's any confusion about a certain character's name, see a rare note at the bottom of the chapter. Also incidentally, Leaf's personality in this story is my own interpretation and is not based on any previous iterations, including the manga.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Eighteen

_Leaf Tornado  
_

"Good to see you again, Palmer; it's been a while," the girl said with a wild grin. "I think the last time I saw you, you were the Sinnoh Tower Tycoon."

"Yeah, it's been a few years," Palmer said from the hallway. He returned with a towel and handed it to her. "Nice to see you made it here all right, Leaf."

"Ah, thanks," Leaf said, taking the rag gratefully. Removing her hat and setting it on the bar table, she sat down on a stool and proceeded to dry her long brown hair. "Yeahhh, it was a bit stormy out there, but it was nothing for my Dragonite, Shinryu—she loves flying in stormy weather." There was a low hiss in her ear, and she turned to the green Pokémon on her shoulder, who was looking reproachfully at her. "All right, all right, you fussy thing," she said with a sigh, toweling the Pokémon's head. "You'd think a Grass Pokémon would be able to handle a bit of falling water..." She turned back to the group and started to continue. "But anyway, as I was say—"

She was startled by four pairs of eyes fixed intently upon her. Soul and Barry were on their knees, facing backward on the couch, eyes sparkling with awe. Silver couldn't hide the intrigue on his face, and even Palmer had a hungry look of deep interest. It took only a moment for her to realize it wasn't her they were staring at, but the little green Pokémon she had with her.

Leaf chuckled. "I see you've noticed my newest addition," she said with a sly smile, scooping him from her shoulder and standing him on top of the bar so they could all admire him properly.

Soul had never seen a Pokémon quite like him. He was sleek and snake-like, but, puzzlingly, had small, thin arms and legs. The tip of his tail has a fan of leaves, and his amber-brown eyes stared around at each of them, a bored, sneering glint inside them. Not wishing to be gawked at, the Pokémon clambered back onto Leaf's shoulders and hid behind her neck, only the tip of his pointed snout visible from within the curtain of hair.

Leaf laughed. "You'll have to forgive Excalibur's rudeness; he gets this kind of attention everywhere I go," she said, patting the Pokémon.

"Where'd you get him?" Barry said with baited breath, sounding very much like the second Leaf told him the location, he would dash out the door to go catch one himself.

Leaf leaned on the bar and rubbed her chin thoughtfully, looking at the ceiling. "His story begins in the fifth generation..." She paused, as if waiting for laughter at a joke she had apparently told, but when she received none she waved her hand dismissively. "My boyfriend got him for me when he was visiting a far-away region on some business," she explained. "I forget the name...started with an 'i,' I think..." She patted the Pokémon's head fondly. "I've grown quite attached to the little guy, but he doesn't like to walk places; he prefers riding on my shoulders, as you can see."

"So, Leaf, you think you're ready to be the new Johto Tower Tycoon?" Palmer asked, changing the subject. "I mean, we called you because Red recommended you, but..."

"Che', that stubborn cousin of mine," Leaf said bitterly, folding her arms and sighing. "He was your first choice, wasn't he?"

"Well..."

"Mm-hmm," she said with a sage nod. "Thought so. You'll be hard-pressed to get him to agree to stay in one place. He prefers to be a vagabond. Granted, I can't blame him, since I've been doing the same..." She sighed. "But Green's been nagging the hell out of me to stay in one place for years..."

There was a buzz on the intercom, and Palmer rose from the couch to answer it.

"So, Leaf, you and Red are cousins?" Soul asked, genuinely curious.

"Nn, yeah, we are. You know 'im?"

"Mostly of him, but I did meet him, once."

"Lemme guess," Leaf said with a grin, leaning her back against the bar, "he challenged you to a battle without a word, right?"

"Yeah," Soul said with a nod, surprised. "I was completely flattened."

"Che', he's such a smug bastard," Leaf grumbled. "Just once I'd like to see someone kick his ass in battle. Years of winning has given him a god complex. I mean, I heard he's been haunting Mt. Silver for a few months now. Who in their right mind would _willingly_ stay up there in the bitter cold? I bet he fancies himself a king on top of that mountain..."

"He seemed pretty nice after our battle..." Soul said with uncertainty. "Quiet, maybe, but he politely thanked me for the match..."

"Oh, he's nice enough to people if he doesn't know them well," Leaf said, waving her hand dismissively. "But when it comes to people he's known for years and sees as rivals, like Green and me, he's one arrogant son-of-a—"

"Pizza's on its way up," Palmer said as he joined them on the couch.

"Ahhh, good, I'm _starving_," Leaf moaned happily. "You wouldn't believe the food on that ship; plain awful..."

As Leaf went into a rant about horrible cruise liner food, Soul glanced at Silver, who seemed to be staring out the window, a fierce look in his eyes. "Silver?" she asked quietly, making sure none of the others could hear. "Is something wrong?"

Silver turned slowly toward her, and then in a low tone, he muttered, "_You never told me you met Red._"

The elevator chimed and the doors opened, and Soul turned merely out of distraction but was surprised so much that her gaze remained: standing in the elevator box, holding five pizza boxes stacked, was a very grumpy-looking and soggy Green, the Viridian City Gym Leader.

Leaf turned and smiled with vague surprise as she hopped off the stool to go greet him. "Oh hey! Green! You didn't tell me you would be coming here—"

"_Oh, don't give me that bull crap,_" Green said irritably as he entered the room and set the thin boxes on the kitchen's island, his shoes squeaking damply on the tile floor. "You _knew_ I was going to be there at the harbor to pick you up and you _purposely_ left me behind."

"Well, yeah," Leaf admitted sheepishly, "I remember you texting me you were going to meet me there, but I can assure you I didn't leave you at the altar on _purpose_. There was a storm coming, and I wanted to get here before it got too bad, that's all."

Green's eyebrow twitched. "You jumped on your Dragonite and took off when you were _five feet in front of me_. When I called out to you, you turned and _waved_ at me."

A mild grin twitched at the corners of her lips, and Leaf feigned ignorance by staring at the ceiling, apparently thinking. "Did I? Oh well, it's not like you couldn't just hop on your Pidgeot and follow me—"

"I told you last week my Pidgeot was hurt in a battle and has been recovering back home at grandpa's lab!" he growled. "I had to ride my Arcanine until the rain got so bad that I couldn't let him suffer any more and then I _walked_ the rest of the way. You're always pulling these stupid games with me, and if I didn't know any better, I'd—"

"Now, now, dear, not in front of the children," Leaf said, putting a finger to his mouth to silence him, indicating the curious group of on-lookers behind her back. Turning on her heel, she stood beside him and smiled. "Right, for those that aren't in the know, this is Green, the Viridian City Gym Leader and my boyfriend."

"Che', you'll be lucky if you can still call me that after this one," Green grumbled sourly as he walked over and took a seat on a stool, grabbing the towel Leaf had used earlier. He turned to Palmer. "I showed up at the same time as your food did, so I took the liberty of carrying it since I was on my way up anyway," he explained. "Front desk said to tell you it's on your tab."

"Right, right," Palmer said with a nod. He glanced around at the group of teenagers. "Well, don't just sit there, guys, help yourselves!"

Barry cheered and leapt from his position, eager to claim himself some much-needed sustenance. As the group gathered around to enjoy their meal, Leaf and Green arguing (put in a much more playful manner now, Soul noticed), Soul recognized the all-too familiar iciness Silver directed at her. It was as if they were fresh rivals all over again. Why was it so important to Silver that she had failed to mention her meeting with Red? Why was he so angry? These burning questions and the uneasy pit in her stomach made it difficult for her to have much of an appetite.

He didn't speak to her for the rest of the evening.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"She was going to tell him how she felt, and she was going to do it tonight."

* * *

**Rare Note:** For anyone that's vaguely confused as to why I called what the English audience knows as Blue in the games "Green" instead, it's because Green is what his name is supposed to be. It was changed to Blue for the games in English due to Green Version's non-existence at the time, but most people of his fandom agree that we should refer to him by his proper name, that being Green. Sorry if you have issues with this.


	19. Chapter 19: Magical Leaf

**Note:** My sincerest apologies for this being late; all I can say is I've been busy. I hope you'll enjoy the chapter, though, despite it's lateness.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Nineteen

_Magical Leaf  
_

"_Uuuwaaaaah_, that feels nice," Leaf said as she held the extendable showerhead aloft, hot, steamy water pouring over her naked body. Excalibur made a small hiss, and with a sigh, Leaf showered his head as he sat in her lap. "You're such a demanding thing, aren't you..."

Soul and Chocobo were already in the bathtub, Soul staring gloomily at the tiled floor while Chocobo sat along the shallow edge, preening his feathers and splashing warm water in between them. Soul rested her chin on her folded arms, her mind lost in thoughts of Silver. What could she have done to make him so angry? He seemed mad about her meeting with Red, but why was this so? Why was it such a big deal? It certainly wasn't that momentous of an occasion to her at the time she met him, so why...? She just couldn't wrap her head around it. The whole thing addled her brain and made her dizzy, although it could be that she'd been soaking in the water too long.

The boys had been nice enough to let the girls have first dibs on the bath, so she and Leaf had taken it hostage. Soul made it a courtesy not to stare at others whenever she was in public bath situations, but a few stray glances at Leaf told her at the very least she had a nicely-shaped body, with lots of smooth, delicate curves. Soul pondered over her own body: poorly chested, only the faintest signs of a feminine shape...True, she was merely a fledgling on the path to womanhood, but...if she had a body like Leaf's, would it make any difference to Silver? She wondered dreamily what that might be like...

She shook her head briskly; why on earth was she letting herself get distracted with something so silly? The hot water must be boiling her brain.

"Fuu, that's the ticket," Leaf sighed as she plopped down on the tiled ledge that made the seat of the tub. "I gotta tell ya', after years of using public baths and Center showers, it's nice to get a nice bath all to yourself, am I right?"

"Nn," Soul said half-halfheartedly, not looking up.

Leaf raised an eyebrow and gave the younger girl a curious glance; meanwhile, Excalibur strolled over to the side of the tub where Chocobo was bathing and sat beside him, wishing to strike up a conversation. "It's Soul, right? Your name, I mean?"

"Nn, yeah."

"Right..."

They sat in silence for a while, the sounds of water dripping from the shower faucets echoing in the narrow room.

"So, which of those two guys are you sleeping with, exactly?"

Soul shot up, thoroughly surprised and taken aback, and she didn't even bother to withhold her yell of, "_What the hell kind of a girl do you think I am?_"

* * *

Outside in the living room, Barry and Silver looked up from the game of checkers they'd been playing (Silver was winning), and even Palmer had to cast a curious glance away from his newspaper and down the hallway toward the bath.

"Leaf must be trying to molest her," Green said with a sigh as he applied a Hyper Potion to his Arcanine in a corner, healing the wounds he'd sustained while traveling in the rain.

"Molest...?" Palmer and Barry said together, an identical dreamy tone in their voices. Their eyes strayed to the ceiling, and the faintest bit of red leaked from their noses.

"I was just kidding," Green said, his eyebrows furrowed.

* * *

Leaf laughed heartily. "I see that got your attention!" she said. "Right, now that there's two people in the conversation, let's say you tell me what's on your mind."

Soul's shoulders slackened slightly, and she turned away for decency's sake, feigning ignorance. "I don't know what you mean," she said, resting her arms on the back ledge again.

Leaf snorted. "_Please_, if you were any mopier, you'd think someone had died," she said, leaning on her elbow. "I know we just met and all, but I like to think I'm a good listener, when I'm not doing all the talking myself..." She took up the same position as Soul and scooted closer so their elbows almost touched. "Now, I'm going to take a shot in the dark here and assume it's...boy trouble?"

Soul said nothing, but her pinkening face gave it away.

"Yep yep, you can't hide it," Leaf said wryly. "So, if the blond one is Palmer's son, I doubt you've known him long, so it must be the red-headed one." Her grin broadened as Soul's head lifted. "So I'm right?" The younger girl nodded, and Leaf smiled. "But he seems like such a..._cheerful_ fellow, what could be the problem there?" She laughed as Soul seemed to catch her sarcasm, and the younger girl smiled too.

So she told her. Everything, barring a few extreme details, such as Silver's connection to Giovanni and her encounter with Celebi. She explained how out of sorts she'd been around Silver lately; this quiet, mousy demeanor wasn't how she was at all, but ever since her feelings for Silver had come to the surface, she always felt so tense and awkward around him. She didn't like it...she didn't like it at all! She was usually peppier and more outgoing, but her confusion and hesitation towards confessing her feelings and her doubts about being rejected just..._petrified_ her. Then there was all this nonsense about Red out of nowhere, and she just felt so..._stressed_. Leaf listened quietly, nodding occasionally and grunting an occasional, "Mm-hmm." When it had all been laid out on the table, Soul leaned her back against the edge of the tub, exhausted from all the talking.

"Well, if you're asking me, and, well," she chuckled, "you are, I'd say you really don't have much to worry about."

Soul sat up a bit, her lips parting but no words escaping them.

"About the whole awkward thing, that's all normal," Leaf said with a wave of her hand. "You think Green and I always got along so well?" She laughed when Soul's eyebrows raised. "All that yelling before, he may complain, but he knows that's one of the reasons why he stays with me. Never a dull moment and all that, you know? But when we first started dating, _gaahhhh_..." She leaned back. "That was an annoying time for me. Neither one of us really knew what to say or what to do. Our first date, we went to dinner and a movie, and I kid you not, neither one of us said a single thing the whole evening. _Ugh_, it was awful! Three-and-a-half hours of nothing being said outside of ordering food. Just us, staring off into space and avoiding eye contact the whole time. It was _agonizing_. So anyway, as we were walking back home, I finally just got sick of it, so I picked up a rock and clocked him in the back of the head." Soul let out a gasp, and Leaf waved it off, reassuring her, "It was a small rock, don't freak out. He didn't even bleed that much...Anyway, we ended up arguing, him about me throwing the rock and me about how the only reason I threw the rock was because he hadn't said a damn thing all night. Anyway, the argument ended up escalating, and then...well..."

"Well...what?" Soul asked when a few seconds had passed with no answer.

"Well, we kissed, naturally." Leaf grinned at Soul's expected reaction. "I know, weird, right? He ended up thanking me later for throwing that rock, because it took me striking up the courage to shatter the tension for him to realize it was the passionate side of me that he liked, and he didn't want it to be so uncomfortable, either." She snickered. "He doesn't know it, but I actually saved that rock; I keep it in a special pocket in my bag, to remind me that I should never let things get awkward between the two of us." Her eyes drifted nostalgically to the ceiling. "Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is that it takes confidence to break the silence. You're only acting weird because you're unsure of yourself, and until you believe in yourself more, it's never going to get better."

There was a loud banging on the bath's door, and Green's muffled voice groused from the other side. "Leaf, you two have been in there for almost an hour! How's about letting someone else have a turn?"

"Ah, keep your pants on, because I can assure you no one in this whole apartment wants to see that!" Leaf shouted back.

"_Dammit_, Leaf, you get out of there right now!"

"Fine, but if I come out there as I am right now, you and the rest of the boys out there would be getting quite an eyeful! Not that it's anything you haven't seen already!"

"D...Dammi..._Just hurry up!_"

"Hee, I stumped him," Leaf said gleefully as she rose out of the tub and reached for her towel.

"So you really think I just need to be more confident?" Soul asked as she too garbed herself in a towel to dry off.

"Oh, most definitely," Leaf said with a sincere nod.

"And what about the whole thing with Red? What do you suppose that is?"

Leaf turned to her and grinned. "Sounds like textbook jealousy, to me."

"E..._Eh?_"

"Sure; you met a hot-shot trainer, a famous one at that, and he feels intimidated," she said with a shrug. She paused. "...You don't like Red too, do you?"

"What? Oh, no! I barely met him!" Soul said with several shakes of her head.

"Ah, good, because he can be such a pain in the ass sometimes..." Leaf muttered. She brightened on a happier note. "So, it seems to me like if he's jealous about you liking someone else, the only thing left for you to do is to confess how you feel! It'll stop his fears, you'll be able to act normally around him, and the two of you can be happy together knowing that there's no one else standing in the way. But first," she said with a wink, "_you_ have to get out of the way of your heart." And with that she strolled away to get dressed.

Soul held onto the top of her towel, soaking in all the advice she'd been given. With a deep inhale, she tightened her focus. No more waiting, no more excuses. She was going to tell him how she felt, and she was going to do it tonight.

* * *

"Fat lot of good confidence does me when he keeps avoiding me..." Soul muttered into the darkness as she lied on the top bunk in hers and Leaf's guest room. The room was small, with two bunk beds on either wall, a desk lamp perched at the head of each bed. A clock on the wall ticked past midnight, and she sighed, staring at the ceiling. So she'd had a small setback; nothing to worry about. Tomorrow, they'd be heading toward Olivine, and it'd be just the two of them again. That would be the moment...that would be the best time to confess.

She felt an odd tickle in the back of her throat, and realizing it was a thirst, she rose from underneath the covers to retrieve a glass of water from the kitchen, leaving Chocobo snoozing at the foot of her bed. Quietly, she slipped out the door and into the dark hallway; the light over the bar seemed to be on in a kitchen, guiding her in what would have otherwise been a blind effort. It wasn't until she neared the end of the hall, however, that she noticed the low voices emanating from beneath the light source.

"So you're really going through with this?"

Soul recognized the masculine voice as Green's, and she sidled up to the end of the hall and peered around the corner. She was right; the voice had been Green's, and he was addressing, not-too-surprisingly, Leaf, who sat across from him at the bar.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Leaf replied, a skeptical rise in her hushed tone.

"I'm just making sure it's what you really want to do," Green said with a shrug. "After all, you're a lot like your cousin in that regard; neither one of you likes to be cooped up for long."

"Don't compare me to that jack-ass."

"Wha...Oh jeez, don't tell me you're still bitter because he beat you the last time you saw him."

"_It was close, dammit!_" Leaf spat. "We were both down to our last! And besides that, he's always such an arrogant little prick when he's around me!"

"Yeah, he does that because he knows it'll get a rise out of you. And you fall for it, _every_ time. You and I both know he's not as bad as you make him out to be." He paused, eying her seriously. "...You haven't been bad-mouthing him to people and giving them the wrong idea again, have you?"

Leaf turned and looked at the wall, murmuring, "...It may have come up, once, maybe..."

Green sighed. "_Leaf..._"

Soul stood frozen in place, unsure of whether she should be witnessing this lover's-quarrel. She knew it wasn't her business, but the curiosity and intrigue was too much to ignore. She decided to listen for just a while longer.

"...What're you doing?"

Ice shot down her spine, and she whirled around to come face-to-face with none other than Silver. Her jaw slackened, and she stared at him, speechless.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"...You know I love you, right?"


	20. Chapter 20: Lovely Kiss

**Note:** Wow, the 20th chapter. It feels like a milestone. It's just a shame this isn't a super-special chapter. Oh well. Let's save that for next time. Enjoy!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty

_Lovely Kiss_

"What're you doi—"

"Shhh!" Soul hissed, clamping a hand to Silver's mouth. "They'll hear you!"

"What the hel—"

"_Shhhh!_"

Sighing and resigning himself to silence, Silver peered around the corner with Soul. Spotting the couple under the lamplight, he looked down at Soul, an eyebrow raised. "Eavesdropping? _Really?_" Soul hushed him again, and he sighed. "Honestly, I didn't realize you were so nosy..."

"Enough about Red," Leaf said with much distaste, "tell me how things have been with you. How's the Gym?"

"Same as always," Green said with a shrug, fiddling with the straw in his glass so as to have something to do with his hands. "Lots of losers, a few winners. Nothing extraordinary to report." He straightened and fixed her with a more attentive gaze. "What about you? I haven't seen you since your birthday in June."

"Ah, true, that _was_ the last time we saw each other, wasn't it?" Leaf said, realizing the fact as well. "Which reminds me, I never did thank you properly for my birthday present."

"The new PokéGear? Ah, don't mention it."

"No, not _that_ present," Leaf said, shaking her head, "although I was definitely in need of an upgrade...I'm talking about the _other_ present. _You know_..." She raised her eyebrows a few times and smiled at him.

Green stared at her for a moment, not understanding. This confusion didn't last long, however, because his suddenly flushing face gave away his realization, and he coughed to cover it up. "So anyway, how was Sinnoh? You said you had to go back there for some sort of training, right?"

He seemed rather intent on changing the subject, so Leaf politely obliged him. "Nn, I wanted to travel through some areas I hadn't in my first visit there, see some new things. Oh, and I finally evolved Inari."

"The Eevee I gave you back when we were first dating?" Green asked, surprised. "I was wondering when you were finally going to decide what she was going to become."

"Well, she never seemed ready before then," Leaf said with a shrug. "I offered her some of the stones, but she just kept turning her nose up at them. Wasn't until we were walking through Eterna Forest a second time that she finally seemed okay with it. She's so stubborn." Leaf chuckled. "Reminds me of her original trainer." He sneered at her, and she laughed. "But, anything else I should've told you on the phone when it happened, so there's not much else to report."

"Oh, you mean during the maybe three times you've called me in the last four months?" Green said, slight irritation in his voice.

"Hm? Oh no, I called you more than that, didn't I?"

"Not according to my count," Green said, shaking his head. "But then, you never really call me that much. Sometimes I wonder why you even bother calling me your boyfriend if don't want to talk to me."

"Oh, Green, don't say it like that..."

"No, I'm serious!" Green said, leaning forward on the bar. "You barely call, you never write; half the time I don't even know where you are, what you're doing, or if you're safe! And then you pull all those stupid pranks on me like the crap you pulled today! I've got to be honest, Leaf, sometimes I wonder if you even care about me at all!" He leaned back on the stool and folded his arms, disgusted.

Leaf stared at the counter for a moment, thinking in silence. Suddenly, she rose up, reached across the bar, grabbed Green by the shirt, and pulled him toward her.

Soul had never seen someone kiss another person in real life; to be sure, she'd seen it happen in movies plenty of times, but to see the real thing, right in front of her, left a truly powerful impression. Her heart tightened, and without even realizing it, she held her breath, awestruck by the sudden gesture of passion. Had Silver not groaned in his throat behind her, she would have all-but-forgotten his presence.

Leaf and Green pulled away, and she stood there for a moment, staring into his eyes, trying to convey what she couldn't do justice in words. Finally, in a low voice, she said, "Back in June, I told you that I wanted to get married in a year or two...and you agreed. I honestly thought that was enough to prove how I felt about you, but obviously I was wrong." She slowly sat down on her stool again. "Yeah, I play tricks on you, Green, but only because I'm trying to have a little fun with you...And it's not like I _mean_ to not call; hell, you know how distracted I can get when I'm in training-mode, and you're no different. You and I, we've been together for a long time now, and our dynamic has been pretty much the same from the beginning. So it's not like anything has changed..."

Green sat down on his stool again and shut his eyes, grinning. "Even after all this time...you still can't tell when I'm pretending to be mad."

Leaf looked up at him, surprised, and he returned her stare with a smug smile. She growled and threw a playful punch at him across the bar, which he dodged, laughing.

Soul sighed, an uncontrollable grin on her face. "It must be nice to have someone you care about like that," she whispered. "I envy them. Don't you, too, Silver? ...Silver?" She turned around, but he'd obviously walked away when she hadn't noticed. A mere moment told her where he'd gone, as a loud flushing sound came from the toilet room. Soul's smile faded. "...Quite the romantic you chose to fawn over, eh, Soul?"

"Admit it, I got you," Green said with a laugh, as Leaf fumed on her stool across from him.

Sighing and looking up at him, she smiled, too. "Yeah, yeah, I suppose it was going to happen eventually." She reached across the bar and took his hand, adding quietly, "...You know I love you, right?"

Green chuckled, and replied, "Of course I do, dummy. Why else would I put up with you?"

"You done being a pervert?" Silver muttered in Soul's ear, causing her to startle.

Whirling around, she slapped his arm with the back of her hand. "Don't scare me like that! And I'm not a pervert!" she said with a huff. "It's not like I got out of bed just to eavesdrop; I was coming to get a glass of water when I stumbled upon them!"

"So the fact that you've been listening to their whole private conversation is just a consolation prize?" Silver said with a snide grin, folding his arms.

"I was just waiting for them to finish talking!" Soul said, flustered, her face turning red.

"So all you wanted was a glass of water?"

"That's righ—_Silver, where are you going?_"

The last bit had been whispered frantically at him, but Silver didn't hear it, for he'd walked past her and out into the open. Not even paying any mind to the two sitting at the bar, who gave him surprised glances, he walked into the kitchen, retrieved a glass, and filled it with water. He then walked back to the hallway and disappeared again, leaving Leaf and Green unacknowledged and slightly confused.

"Wow, that was so difficult," Silver said, handing her the glass. He then walked past her, waving over his shoulder before disappearing behind his guest room's door.  
Soul stood there in the hallway, thoroughly flabbergasted. Huffily, she took a sip of the water and headed back to bed as well.

* * *

"Well, it was nice meeting you," Soul said as she and Silver stood outside the Battle Tower the next morning, Leaf, Green, Barry, and Palmer standing in the entrance way. "I'll have to come back and challenge the Tower to get a shot at battling you, Leaf."

"I'd like that!" Leaf said with a wide, toothy grin. "Whenever you're up for a fight, you know where to find me. Oh!" She pulled something from her pocket and approached Soul. "And, if you ever have some free time and want to talk, give me a call," she said, handing the girl her own PokéGear and extending a hand for Soul's so the two could input their respective numbers. She leaned closer and whispered, shielding her mouth with her hand, "I'd especially like to know how things turn out with mister angry-face." She winked at her, coaxing a smile out of the younger girl.

"Well, take care now, Soul," Palmer said, waving, "and if you're ever in Sinnoh, look me up sometime, won't you? I'll be looking forward to our rematch until then."

Nodding and smiling, she and Silver headed down the stairs, waving at the group on top of the hill.

The trip through the Battle Frontier was quiet. They stopped, as Soul requested, by the local Mart to restock on supplies, but Silver waited silently outside the doors for her, making Soul wonder if perhaps she was annoying him with her detour. As they left the Battle Frontier behind, she felt herself growing more and more nervous. This was it, and there was no turning back. 'It takes confidence to break the silence, right?' she thought, balling her fist to reassure herself. Taking a deep breath, she opened her mouth to speak, but Silver beat her to the punch.

"Say...about yesterday, and the whole deal with Red..."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Of course. It made sense."


	21. Chapter 21: Unburden

**Note:** Surprise! Early update! Enjoy! c:

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-One

_Unburden_

An autumn wind coming in from the sea washed over her body, contrasting her increasingly-warm cheeks, and Soul tucked her bangs behind her ear as they blew in her face. Was he going to explain what had bothered him? Was he going to apologize? She withheld a small gasp as something in her stomach dropped, the full weight of realization upon her: _was he going to confess first?_

"I should've explained what was wrong at the time, but there were so many people around..." Silver said, scratching the back of his head, trying to figure out where to begin. "You see...well..." He turned to her. "You know what Red's famous for...right?"

"Of course," Soul said with a nod. "Everyone knows that about five years ago, Team Rocket was controlling Kanto through extortion and brute force, and it was thanks to Red that they were taken out of power. It was all over the news, and they used him as an example that any trainer can be a hero, or something like that."

"And how do you suppose he took Team Rocket out of power?" Silver asked, folding his arms.

"Well, he infiltrated each of their operations, I heard, and in the end he—" She stopped. Her eyes widened. Suddenly, everything became clear to her, in a huge rush of information. Jealousy? No. That wasn't why Silver was mad. How...How could she have been so stupid?

Silver grinned a bit. "Figured it out?" he said with a snicker. "Red ended up defeating my dad, Giovanni, when he came to face him at his Gym in Viridian City. After that battle, my father left, and went into hiding. Which meant that I..." He stopped and turned away, looking up at the gray sky.

"...Got left behind..." Soul said quietly, her body numb.

Silver closed his eyes and cleared his throat. "My mom, she...she died when I was pretty small. She got sick, but it wasn't something she should've died from. But...there were complications, and she ended up passing away. My father started Team Rocket shortly after that...I think he blamed society for what happened to my mother." Silver sat down on a nearby rock and motioned for Soul to do the same, and she sat down beside him, eager to listen. "He said something about how the doctors didn't do everything they could have done for her because of some kind of political battle about health care at the time...I was only four or five, so I barely remember any of it. After that, he was hardly ever home, and he spent the next few years building Team Rocket as a gang and a name, until the point that they were a full-blown mafia, with him at the head."

"And what about you?" Soul asked, hugging Chocobo closer to her chest. "You were too little to be on your own, weren't you?"

Silver sighed, scratching his head. "I was shoved off on relatives for a while," he said with a small shrug. "They didn't know what my father was up to; they just assumed he was off training for his Gym, since he'd closed it down once Mom got sick. A year or so later they figured out what he was doing, and...none of them wanted to take care of me. They pretty much disowned us as their family and told my father they wouldn't look after me any more. So, he was forced to look after me, but saying it that way gives him far too much credit...He took me with him sometimes, if he was going to be gone for a long while, but I pretty much was put in a room with food and left there while he managed other parts of the organization." He laughed. "I was still so naive then. Thinking back on it now...I hate who I was then...As I got older, I realized he was into some bad things, but I didn't know what I could really do about it. After a while, I just learned to accept it...Anyway, long story short is, when my father went into hiding back at the Viridian City Gym, I went with him. But...I think he knew going there was a mistake, and that he would have to face Red again eventually. And he was right: two months later, Red showed up at the Gym. I watched from the sidelines as my father was defeated by a boy not much older than I was then, and I watched as my father fled, defeated, like the coward that he was." He sighed and looked up at the sky. "He left me behind on that day...or should I say, I let him go. I was furious with him. Furious that he lost, furious that he left, furious that he was such a coward. The news started to spread about how Giovanni, the great and powerful leader of Team Rocket, had been defeated by a boy, and that he'd gone into hiding. The police came looking for him, and I was forced to leave Kanto or risk getting taken into custody...

"For a long time...I blamed Red for all of it. After all, it was thanks to him that my father became such a coward, and it was thanks to him that I was forced to live on my own. But..." He sighed and looked at the sky again. "I've learned as I've gotten older that I can't blame him for the choices my father made. Hearing that you met him struck up old feelings, I guess, and I got kinda pissy about it." He turned to her. "So I guess I'm sorry about that. Sorry if you thought I was mad or whatever."

Soul stared at her lap, her eyes concealed by the brim of her hat. Of course. It made sense. What made her ever think that jealousy was the problem? For a moment, she felt like cursing Leaf, who'd lead her to believe that lie, but in the same moment, she stopped herself, because it wasn't Leaf's fault. She was just misinformed, that's all. With all the information about Silver's past in perspective, his blaming Red for his abandonment was the logical choice. It made sense. So why...why was she starting to cry? Why did she feel so betrayed and deflated? She hugged Chocobo a bit tighter, who looked up at her and chirped in concern.

"Soul?" Silver asked, tilting his head a bit to try and catch a glimpse of her face.

"Right, right, don't worry about it!" Soul said cheerfully as she looked up, hoping the tears that played at the corners of her eyes weren't noticeable. She stood up and casually brushed them away. "I was just worried that I did or said something to upset you, but now that you've told me that, it makes more sense." She turned to him. "I am...sorry, though," she said, looking at her feet. "It sounds like you had a rough life."

Silver eyed her for a moment and then stood as well. "Nn, nothing you can do about it. You kind of just have to roll with what you get, I suppose." He shrugged and started walking with her again. "I learned to be more self-reliant because of it, so it all works out in the end." They walked along a good ways down the lengthy beachline in silence, the winds from another upcoming storm threatening them with its bitter chill. "...So, what about you?"

"Hm?"

"I told you about my family baggage, so what about you?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because it's effing cold and I need something to take my mind off it," Silver said frankly, rubbing his hands together and sticking them in his armpits for warmth.

"Oh, nice to know you're so genuinely interested!" Soul said with a laugh. "But...there's not much to tell, I guess. My parents are divorced, and my mom and I moved to New Bark Town from Hoenn about...four years ago? It's just been me and her there ever since. Nothing too special to report on my end."

"It must be nice to live a boring life," Silver said with a snide grin.

"Well, we can't all be tragic sob stories, now, can we?" Soul said, returning the expression.

The two laughed; they were nearing Olivine now, the city limits just on the edge of the horizon. Soul would be grateful when they got there, because her cheeks were stinging in the cold wind; perhaps it was time to ask her mother to send her winter coat to her...

"After all the loud people we've been around over the past week, it's nice to be alone again," Silver said. "Well...I guess you're still here, so I'm not entirely alone. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, though."

Soul scoffed. "Trust me, if I didn't have such a huge crush on you, I would've left a long time ag—"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Everything was different now."


	22. Chapter 22: Quick Feet

Note: Aaaagggh, so late, sorry. Was sick last week. Enjoy! Sorry this is a bit short, but I'll make up for it next time, I promise!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Two

_Quick Feet_

Silver's legs pounded heavily on the pavement, a welcome retreat from the shifting sand he'd been running on, and he stopped a moment to catch his breath. Where the hell had she gone? He stopped to clear his mind and remember what had happened...

* * *

"What?" he asked, looking at Soul.

She stood statuesque and rigid, her face flooding with color. Then, out of nowhere, she took off, flying toward town as quickly as her legs could take her, Chocobo clutched tightly to her chest.

* * *

What the hell was her problem? She had said something, and then boom, off she ran, without so much as an explanation. What sort of game was she playing at? In this chilly weather, with a storm rolling in, he wasn't in the mood for hide-and-seek. Growling a bit, he took off again to look for her in the harbor town, grabbing at a stitch in his side. She was going to pay for making him chase after her.

Red shoes beat against the cobblestone over and over again, punctuated by gasping, raspy breaths and dry coughs. The harbor was full of people milling about, mostly boat owners checking how their vessels had fared in the previous night's storm and re-securing them for the one that was to follow. How could she have been so stupid! Without even realizing it, the words just tumbled out of her mouth; she hadn't even been paying attention. Even worse, she'd been so embarrassed with herself that without even giving Silver time to react, she'd followed her first impulse and run away. Should she stop and try to find him? Maybe he hadn't heard her. But if she went back, she'd have to explain why she ran off. Regret washed over her in waves, and she coughed and sputtered, her throat dried out from the chilly air. Everything had changed. That sarcastic, playful-banter-filled rapport she'd built over the past week, no, over the entire time she'd known Silver, was all gone, in that one instant when those words left her mouth. She was going to tell him how she felt one day, but...but not like that! Not so suddenly and harshly and casually...The ideal she had in her head was shattered, and the thought that she couldn't take those words back ate away at her. She found herself running without any idea of her direction, weaving through the crowd with her chin buried into Chocobo's head feathers.

Silver swore as he leaned on his knees, panting and coughing, small puffs of steamy breath dissipating all around him. The surrounding air was charged and heavy, and the temperature was dropping rapidly. If he got caught in the coming storm just because she wanted to play games...Why had she run off, anyway? She'd been saying something and had stopped mid-sentence, so he never fully understood what she'd said. He straightened and tried to remember, replaying the conversation in his mind. One word stuck out. "'Crush...'" he muttered. He tossed the word around in his head. What could she possibly...?

His eyes widened a bit. She didn't...She couldn't mean...

Suddenly, everything came into focus. The odd behavior, the awkward silences, her sudden interest in wanting to travel with him...Soul, she...she _liked_ him. In a way he never figured a girl would. His feet moved on their own, taking him past the docks and into the heart of town. Why...Why had he not noticed? He shook his head. No...it's not like he was looking for that sort of thing in her. Not to mention he never expected it of her. After all, even_ he_ admitted that he wasn't the nicest person to be around. So why? _Why?_

* * *

"Fuu, it's gonna be a nasty one, Chari," a girl said to her starter Pokémon, a Charizard, who'd been waiting outside the PokéMart for his master. The young trainer adjusted the plastic bags in one hand to the other and checked the PokéGear on the lanyard around her neck. "Blehhh, and it's still so early in the day..." She patted her Charizard's head. "But it can't be helped. I can't take you flying in this kind of weather. Besides," she said, indicating the bags in her hand, "I got us plenty of snacks, so we can hole ourselves up in our room back at the Center." Tugging at the yellow knit cap on her head, she set off for the Pokémon Center, her Pokémon happily following suit. They rounded a corner just in time for another girl, carrying a small Pokémon in her arms, to bump into Chari, and the girl fell over backwards on the ground.

"Holy crap, are you okay?" the female trainer asked, extending a hand to the fallen girl.

The brunette on the ground looked up, her face drained of emotion and zombie-like. The blue-haired girl in pigtails was giving her a concerned look. She looked rather "sporty," in her black stretch pants with a yellow accent along the outside legs, red tanktop, and white short-torso jacket. "I...I'm all right," she said, accepting the girl's assistance.

"Next time, you should try watching where you're going, huh?" the girl said with a sympathetic smile. "That way it's harder to bump into people."

"_Soul!_"

The brunette froze, and her already pallid face lost a bit more color. Slowly, she turned, and, as she suspected, her fears were realized. Silver stood behind her, panting in smokey clouds, his shoulders heaving. His face was hard to read; was he angry, upset, or concerned? She couldn't pick out just one emotion. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out. However, to her surprise, the girl beside her spoke instead.

"..._Sil-Sil?_"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Don't mind me, I'll just be standing right here, talking to myself."


	23. Chapter 23: Uproar

**Notes:** Merry Christmas! Here's the next chapter, a week early, as a present!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Three  
_Uproar_

"I thought that was you, Sil-Sil!" the blue-haired girl said with a grin. "Do you remember me? Well," she said with a meek smile, "I guess it's been a few years..."

Silver wasn't even paying the girl any mind. His whole focus was on Soul, who looked back with tense, quaking eyes.

"I mean, we only met the one time, and that was almost, what, five years ago?" the girl continued, shrugging. "It would be natural for you to forget me."

"We _need_ to talk, Soul," Silver said, taking a step toward her. He watched her edge away from him, as if she was frightened. What was she doing?

"I'm actually a bit surprised I remembered you, to be honest," the girl said with a grin. "Then again, with a head of hair like yours, it's hard to forget, you know?"

Soul stepped backward. Should she run again? The image of Silver's rejection from her nightmare repeated over and over in her mind, numbing her senses and filling her with fear. She didn't want to hear it. She _couldn't_ hear it. She couldn't hear it again!

"...Don't mind me, I'll just be standing right here, talking to myself. Feel free to continue ignoring me," the girl said with a deadpan expression.

"Soul," Silver said with a tense gaze, "_don't_ run again; I _just_ want to talk."

"So this is what it's like to be ignored," the girl said, folding her arms. "Huh, what a funny feeling..."

"Crystal, would you _shut up?_" Silver snapped, finally acknowledging the girl.

"Oh, so you _do_ remember me?" Crystal said with a snarky air of surprise. "I was beginning to wonder if I was invisible, what with the whole _ignoring someone who's talking directly to you_ thing."

Soul felt her feet sliding backward on their own...She had to get away. She couldn't face him; she didn't want to be rejected, not for real. Why couldn't she have let the truth slip at a more romantic time? Why did her head and chest feel so heavy, yet her feet felt so light, as if she could sprint forever? She was going to run and never look back. Seizing the moment of distraction, she tried to make a break for it.

"_Oh no you don't!_" Silver shouted, snatching Soul's arm. "I'm not chasing you again!"

"Hey, hey, hey, what's with the forceful grabbing?" Crystal said with furrowed eyebrows, stepping between the two. "I can see five years still hasn't taught you any manners, Sil-Sil!"

"This is none of your business, Crystal, _and would you stop calling me that?_" Silver spat, the last part even more furious than the rest.

"Oh, it's none of my business that you're chasing this girl and trying to drag her off when she obviously doesn't want anything to do with you? For all I know, you could be trying to take her off to do _God knows what_ to her in some alley!" Crystal took Soul's hand and made a rude face at Silver. "Not on my watch, bub! She's coming with _me_, to keep her safe from _perverts_ like _you!_" She stomped away with a confused Soul in tow, her Charizard following faithfully behind them.

Silver stood, completely flabbergasted, his mouth hanging open. "Wh...What the hell just happened?"

"_Honestly_, you think you know a guy!" Crystal said with disgust as she pulled Soul along, all the while fuming to herself. She continued to grouse under her breath as they passed the docks and approached the Pokémon Center that faced the ocean.

"_Now hold on a second!_" Silver demanded as he caught up to them, his eyes blazing. "You don't even know what's going on, and you're making all these _wild assumptions_ about me and my character! _All of which_, by the way, are _completely_ wrong!"

"Even a blind man could see she didn't want to talk to you!" Crystal said, sticking her tongue out at him. "_We're_ going inside, and _you'd_ better not follow! As a matter of fact," she said as she dug in her inner coat pocket, retrieved a Pokéball, and released a Raichu from it, "Rai-Rai, you stand guard out here under the pavilion. If he even so much as _thinks_ of trying to get past you, Thunderbolt him, okay?"

The electric mouse gave her a salute, and Silver made a mortified face.

"You expect me to stay out here when a _storm's_ about to hit?" Silver exclaimed. "Are you _insane?_"

Turning, Crystal pulled off her sling backpack, rummaged in the main pocket, extracted a collapsible umbrella, and tossed it at him. "Have fun!" she said with evil cheeriness as she, Soul, Chocobo, and Charizard disappeared into the Center.

He stood there, holding the pink umbrella, unable to speak. Growling, he marched toward the Center, remarking, "Like hell some fat rat is going to keep me—" But with two steps, Rai-Rai's cheeks started to spark, causing Silver to hesitate. Cupping his head in his hands, he leaned back and yelled at the sky. "Can this day possibly get any worse?" A fat raindrop, the first of many, landed in his eye. "...Eff my life..."

* * *

"So _that's_ what happened," Crystal said later as she and Soul sat on the bed in their room in the Center, rain beating heavily against their window. "I kind of figured I was way off base with the whole pervert thing, but wow...I can't imagine what it must feel like to accidentally confess to someone you like. That's rough, Soul."

"I was going to wait until I figured out how he feels a bit better," Soul said with a sigh. "But now...now I just don't know. I don't know how he's going to react, or what to do..."

Crystal nodded while a chocolate-covered biscuit stick dangled from her lip. "It's a tough situation."

"...Do you think he'll be okay out there in the storm?"

"Oh, Rai-Rai loves to watch storms up close," Crystal said with a dismissive wave. "He's probably in hog heaven right now." When Soul turned to her with a puzzled expression, she added, "Oh, you mean Sil-Sil. Yeah, I guess he'll be okay. A little rain never killed anybody."

"I've been meaning to ask you about that," said Soul. "How do you know Silver?"

"Hm? Oh, I met him five years ago, back when I was living in New Bark Town."

"You used to live in New Bark Town?"

"Yeah, you heard of it?"

"I live there! Or, well, my house is there."

"Really? I used to live in this small house near the water on the east side of town."

"That's where I live!" Soul gasped. "We moved there a little over four years ago!"

"Ah! So you must be living in my old house! What a small world!" Crystal laughed. "Yeah, I moved to Kanto five years ago, and it was on the day I moved that I met Sil-Sil..."

* * *

"You! Can't! _Gooooooooo!_" the black-haired boy gasped between sobs, his tears dribbling down his chin onto his red tee shirt.

"Gold, I have to," the blue-haired girl with short pigtails said. "My mom and dad are moving to Kanto, so I have no choice but to go with them, you know."

"But..." the nine-year-old boy hiccuped, "who will I play with when you're gone?"

"You'll make new friends, and I can write letters to you!" Crystal assured him, her white sundress fluttering as she stepped closer to him and grabbed his wrists. "And in two years, we'll be Pokémon trainers! That means we'll be able to travel the whole world! So we can always meet up then!"

Gold sniffled and rubbed some tears from his eyes. "You promise?"

Crystal smiled. "I promise! Once I have some Pokémon of my own, I'll come back to visit you, you can count on it."

Gold wiped his tear-soaked hands on his yellow shorts and perked up a bit. "Okay! It's a promise!"

The two walked along the sandy coast of the water front, back toward the walkway up the hill to Crystal's old house, where her parents were busy loading the remainder of their things onto the moving van. A balmy June breeze washed over them, and bug Pokémon chirped faintly in the distance.

"Is Kanto really far away?" Gold asked.

"Not as far as Hoenn or Sinnoh," Crystal shook her head. "We can actually drive there, although we're going to have to cross some mountains, Dad said. He also said trainers go from Johto to Kanto all the time, so it'll be no problem for us to visit each other once we're Pokémon trainers."

"That's good," Gold said with relief. Looking ahead, he stopped. "Hey...what's that?"

Crystal followed his pointing hand, and she squinted a bit. "Something must have washed up on shore...Let's go see!"

Their feet crunched on the wet sand as they approached the small figure. Lying unconscious on the beach, the lower half of his body still submerged in the shallows, was a boy, probably their age, with bright red hair.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"I think he's dead."


	24. Chapter 24: Assist

**Notes:** My apologies; I had a bad week, so this got pushed back on my priorities. I'm very sorry for the lateness. This one's longer than usual, though, so I hope that makes up for it. Enjoy~

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Four

_Assist_

"So wait, you know Gold?" Soul asked, surprised.

"Yeah, you know him too?" Crystal asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Nn, yeah, we live in the same neighborhood back in New Bark Town."

"So he didn't move...huh..."

"Did you two keep your promise to meet up again?" Soul asked, tilting her head.

"Hey, aren't you the least bit curious about what happened to Silver?" Crystal said with a cough.

"Oh! Yes, please continue."

* * *

"I think he's dead," Gold said. He picked up a soggy, nearby stick and poked the boy in the chest. "Yep, definitely dead."

"Oh, knock it off, he's still breathing!" Crystal scolded as she crouched over the boy. "Hey, are you okay?"

The boy stirred and groaned, then his eyes slowly peeked open. "Wh...Where am I...?" he asked with a parched, gravelly voice.

"In New Bark Town," Crystal answered.

"So I made it..." he said with relief. "Stupid raft sank on the way here..."

"You must not have built it well enough, then," Gold said with a snicker.

"Gold!" Crystal hissed. "Here, can you stand?" She offered him a hand.

The boy slapped it away and sat up. "I don't need your charity."

"Hey! Crystal was only trying to help you, you know!" Gold snapped. "We could've just left you to die!"

"Never asked for your help," the boy said as he dusted sand off his damp clothes. "Now where's my..." He glanced around and spotted his bag not far from where he'd washed ashore. Retrieving it and shaking off excess water, he slung the bag over his shoulder and turned to them. "Well, see you."

"Hey, where are you going?" Crystal asked, jogging after him a bit.

The boy turned and shrugged. "Dunno. Somewhere."

"Well...can we at least know your name?"

The boy sighed and ran a hand through his hair in exasperation. "God, you're relentless, aren't you...? It's Silver, although I don't see why it matters."

Deep in the murky depths, a Magikarp struggled beneath his prison. He'd been stuck there for hours, and he just didn't think he was going to last much longer. Resting his aching body for a moment, he shut his eyes tightly. Was he going to die beneath this wooden contraption? No...no, he couldn't. He had to break free! He wriggled and flailed with all his might, thrashing against the crudely-tied-together wooden logs. He had to escape...he had to live!

"So your name is Silver?" Crystal asked.

"That's what I just said, isn't it?" he asked, annoyed. He hitched his bag more properly. "Well, not that this hasn't been fun meeting you or anything, but I'm out of here."

Suddenly, a blinding white flash shot out from the depths of the lake, followed by a loud bellow. The surface of the water swelled and burst, and a Gyarados broke through with a roar. On top of his head was a clumsily-built raft, the crown horns of the Pokémon jammed between the logs. The wild Gyarados wailed and thrashed, but to no avail; the raft would not budge. Furious, it went into a frenzy, sending vast tidal waves crashing to the shore, knocking over the three observing children.

"We have to do something!" Crystal cried as she and Gold helped each other up. "It's going to hurt itself!"

Silver climbed to his feet and dusted himself off, adding, "Not my problem," before walking away.

Growling furiously, Gold snatched Silver's arm and roared, "It's _your_ stupid raft that caused all this, you...you _dumb ass!_"

"_Ohhhh_, does using a swear word make you feel like a big boy?" Silver cooed, unimpressed.

"_Shut up!_" Gold spat, his cheeks pinkening. "If _you're_ not going to do anything, then _I_ will!" And with the final word, he jumped into the lake and floundered through the water toward the rampaging Gyarados.

"_Gold!_" Crystal yelped. "You idiot, you can barely swim!" She dove into the water after him and tore through the waves with the grace of a natural athlete.

Silver stood on the shore, watching the display. After a moment, he sighed. "_Dammit..._" Casting off his backpack, he leapt into the water as well.

Gold was the first to arrive, gasping and spluttering, and he latched onto one of the Gyarados' back scales. This was a mistake, however, as he was immediately flung around like he was on the back of a bucking Tauros, and it was all he could do to keep himself attached to the Gyarados.

"Gold!" Crystal gasped and she approached and grabbed onto the Pokémon as well. The two grabbed onto each other with one arm and held onto the Pokémon with the other, minds racing as to what to do, as their bodies thrashed around and underwater.

"What are you idiots trying to do, _drown?_" Silver demanded as he joined them. Growling, he leapt at the Gyardos and wrapped his arms as best he could around the thick serpent's neck. The Pokémon took notice of this, however, and let out a loud howl before starting to thrash even more vigorously. "Hold still, you stupid beast!" Silver snarled. With great difficulty, he climbed to the top of its head, where he managed to snag one of the loose ropes on the raft to maintain a somewhat steady footing. He turned to the other two. "You two get up here and help me before we all get ourselves killed!"

Following Silver's lead (but with much difficulty), Gold and Crystal joined Silver near the top, where they started to struggle with the raft. The Gyarados' horns were lodged firmly between the logs, however, and each tug they attempted resulted in a shriek and swish of the Pokémon's head, causing them to almost tumble overboard each time.

"We'll have to all try it together!" Crystal shouted over the roars. The other two boys nodded, and they got into position. "On three! One...Two..._Three!_" Three sets of muscles strained and shoved against the bottom of the raft, and the Gyarados screeched and flailed. Silver felt his side of the raft inch upward just a notch, and he strengthened his efforts. The others must have felt it too, because their pushing intensified as well, and with a giant rush, the raft toppled upward, forward, and then crashed into the lake below. With nothing to hold onto and from the force of their inertia, the three children flew overboard as well. The Gyarados let out a relieved roar and dove into the water, disappearing with a final upsurge of water.

Exhausted, the three returned the shore, where they lied down side-by-side, chests heaving. After a moment of composure, Gold let out a laugh. "Well! That was fun, wasn't it?"

"That was _stupid_ is what that was," Silver said between gasps. "We could have damn near gotten ourselves killed."

"Yeah, well," Gold said, lacking even the energy to argue, "that Gyarados could've died if we hadn't saved it."

"Not that it matters; stupid thing didn't even notice that we helped it," Silver muttered into the sand. "Talk about ungrateful."

"Well, you can't expect too much from it when it was in a mood like that," Crystal said, sitting up. "After all, I bet it was probably scared." She turned toward the water again. "I bet that Gyarados is really happy that he's free now, and he can go back to living his life in peace." Squinting a bit, she frowned, puzzled. "Hey...what's that?" She indicated a small object bobbing inward on the waves, and, climbing to her feet, she waded out to it. She returned with a large oval object, similar in shape to an egg, but the shell was tinted a light blue, unlike any egg any of them had seen.

"It's...an egg..." Gold said, examining it. "What d'you suppose is inside it?" He knocked on the shell, and the egg wobbled in Crystal's hands. "Ah! It moved!"

Crystal smiled and laughed. "It seems like whatever's inside must like you, Gold!"

Silver wasn't paying much attention; he'd gone off to find his backpack, which had been washed back into the water by the waves Gyarados had caused. He grumbled and sighed to himself about the wasted time; it had already been two months since his father came to Johto, so he was already that much behind...not to mention it had taken him so long to get to Johto without Pokémon of his own, and he still wasn't sure if he wanted to chase after his father or not. All he knew was that he couldn't stay in Kanto any more, not with the police sniffing around for his father. He dumped water out of his bag and sighed. Why was everything in his life always so screwed up?

"You know what, Gold," Crystal said, beaming as the boy playfully poked at the egg some more to get a reaction from the occupant inside, "I think I'll give this to you, as a going-away present!"

Gold looked up and blushed. "Wha? But Crystal, _you_ found it, and there might even be a _Pok_é_mon_ inside! I can't take it! Besides," he said as he rubbed the back of his neck, "since _you're_ the one going away, shouldn't _I_ be giving _you_ a going-away present?"

"It's all right," Crystal said, placing the Egg in Gold's hands. "This egg can be the bond of our friendship. So long as you have it, or whatever's inside, we'll always be best friends!" She smiled, and his cheeks flushed. She turned and called out to Silver. "Heyyy, Silver! Are you leaving?"

Silver had just about made it to the hill when he was spotted, and he sighed as the two caught up to him. "What do you want now?"

"I just wanted to say good-bye," Crystal said. "After all, we're friends now, aren't we?"

_Friends?_ The word struck him hard; he'd never had friends before. His eyebrows furrowed. "And what makes you suppose we're friends?"

"Well, it's obvious that we met for a reason," Crystal said brightly, "and we all helped that Gyarados together, like a team. I'd say that's a pretty good reason for us to be friends!"

Silver sighed. "If you say so..."

"And friends never forget each other!" Crystal scolded hotly, wagging a finger at him. "So you have to remember me and Gold, okay?"

"All right, fine, I'll remember you," Silver lied, appeasing her. "Is that all?"

"One more thing," Crystal said with a grin. "You need a super-secret-best-friend-nickname!"

"A _what?_" Silver asked, eyebrows furrowing, but he quickly got his answer.

"From now on, whenever I see you again, I'm going to call you Sil-Sil!"

Gold and Silver made the same expression of disgust, but for two completely different reasons.

"_Crystal!_ That's not fair!" Gold protested. "_I_ never got a nickname, and I've known you a lot longer!"

"Your name is too short; making a nickname would only make it longer," Crystal said, putting her hands on her hips.

Gold crossed his arms, hugging the Egg, and huffily added, "I don't care! From now on, you have to call me Gol-Gol!"

"Gold..."

"_Gol-Gol_," he corrected.

"_Anyway_," Silver said, ignoring their shenanigans and making a mental note to bleach this whole day out of his brain as quickly as he could, "if you're done saying your good-byes, I'm out of here." He hitched his bag and walked away, headed toward the inside of town, ignoring the two as they called after him.

Crystal and Gold watched as Silver disappeared on the horizon and then turned to each other. Their smiles slowly faded, and they shared a sad, knowing stare. Hand-in-hand, they walked back to Crystal's house, toward their new lives without each other, Gold still tightly clutching his farewell present from his best friend.

* * *

"So basically, that's the whole story," Crystal said with a shrug. "I moved away, and this is the first time I've seen Silver since that day. But when you go through something intense like that, it's hard to forget, you know?"

"Yeah..." Soul said in awe. "I can imagine." After pausing for a moment, she straightened. "So you and Gold were best friends growing up, huh?"

Crystal smiled fondly. "Yeah, we were inseparable. I sometimes wonder how he's doing, you know."

"But surely you've seen him since then, haven't you?" Soul asked, aghast. "I mean, you two had your promise to keep, right?"

Crystal's smile sank into a melancholy one, and she hugged her knees. "Funny thing about promises...they're much easier to break than they are to keep." She stared at the window for a moment, lost in thought. "Anyway," she said, brightening, "I've only been to Johto a handful of times since I moved to Kanto; mostly I come here to compete in the Pokéathalon. That's what I'm here for now, actually. Once this storm gets by, I plan to head to the Goldenrod area and compete in the next event." She fixed Soul with a loaded stare. "So, what are you going to do about Silver?"

Soul's face flushed, and she sighed. "I...don't know yet. I have to face him, obviously, but..."

"_Well, there's no time like the present, is there?_"

Soul looked up, surprised. "Wha?"

"I think we've let the poor boy sit out in the rain long enough, don't you?" Crystal said with a grin. Stretching and leaning back on the bed, she added, "Besides, what kind of Trainer would I be if I let my Pokémon sit outside in this kind of weather? Do me a favor and go let him in, would you?" She smiled knowingly at Soul, who hesitantly nodded, rose, and left the room. "Good luck," Crystal whispered. "I hope it works out better for you than my first love did..." Yawning, she rolled over. "I think it's time for a nap. All this stormy weather makes me sleepy..."

Soul leaned against the door to the room, her heart pounding in her ears. This was it. No turning back. Taking a deep breath, she took the first step. As to where it would take her, she wasn't sure, but she was certain that she wouldn't hesitate any more. Leaf's words flitted through her brain; "it takes confidence to break the silence." Clenching her fist, Soul inhaled deeply, stepped onto the mat, and the automatic glass doors slid open.

_But first you have to get out of the way of your heart._

_

* * *

_

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"The truth is...I really like you, Silver."


	25. Chapter 25: Rain Dance

Note: Sorry for the late update; in the process of trying to move, so life delayed me. So sorry. Enjoy!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Five

_Rain Dance _

All warmth vanished in an instant. Heavy rain whipped past her in slanted sheets, battering against the building in heavy concentrations. It was dark, especially for mid-day, and it was bitter cold. Crystal's Raichu sat huddled at her feet beneath the overhang, no longer enjoying the thunderstorm as he normally would. Soul leaned down and gave the Pokémon a pat. "Crystal was worried about you, so she asked me to come tell you to go inside," she said gently. Rai-Rai gave her a curious look, then looked out in what Soul assumed was Silver's direction. "Don't worry about him; I'll handle it," she said with a reassuring smile. Digging in her bag, she removed a red umbrella and then handed her bag to Rai-Rai. "Will you take this inside for me?" The Pokémon nodded and then happily disappeared into the warmth of the building; Soul felt the comforting rush of heat on her face from inside and the sudden chill as the doors closed once more. Taking a deep breath, she turned.

He was sitting there, alone across from the Center, on one of the benches on the pier. The multi-colored parasol attached to the seat saved him from downpours from above, and he'd set up the pink umbrella Crystal had loaned him to protect his right side, but even through the haze of the storm, Soul could tell he was soaked straight through. He was staring directly at her, she could make out, but as to what his expression was, she couldn't guess. Inhaling deeply, she erected her umbrella and ventured out into the gale.

The umbrella was useless. Inside of the minute it took her to get to Silver's bench, she was drenched to the skin, and she shivered despite herself. If it was this cold in just a short minute, then poor Silver, who'd been out in the midst of it for an hour...She approached him and stood before him, clenching the handle on her umbrella.

His face was much easier to read up close, but he wasn't looking at her; he was staring ahead, not flinching, hardly blinking. He didn't react at all when she sat down on the wet bench beside him and propped her umbrella on the opposite side, creating a small bubble around them protecting them from the rain and the wind. They sat there together, neither saying a word, Soul's chest growing tighter and tighter with each passing moment. Unable to bear it any longer, she opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off by Silver instead.

"You know, I figured you'd make me wait outside for a little while until Crystal cooled off, but I never imagined you'd leave me out here to catch my death in this fucking storm, Soul. After all, weren't you the one who said we were friends?"

The words cut sharply through her, like he'd physically stabbed her in the same instant, and she struggled to find her breath for a moment. She was such an inconsiderate fool. No, worse than inconsiderate; in that instant, she felt down-right cold-hearted. She shut her eyes and thanked whatever divine existence was out there for the rain that masked her tears.

"And the funny thing is, if I hadn't kind of figured it out for myself, I would've been sitting out here with no idea as to why. Since you've been so straight with me over the past few hours."

"I'm sorry...!" Soul blurted, but she regretted it, because it was indeed a mistake.

"Because sorry makes it all better!" Silver shouted. "Sorry makes the numbing sensation in my fucking hands go away! Yeah, all is forgiven now that you've come down from on high and divined that to me!"

She deserved this. It hurt so much, but she deserved every word. She bit her lip and held back tears.

"All I wanted was a straight answer from you! But no, you gave me the fucking run-around like it was some kind of game, a big joke! I bet you and Crystal had a good laugh about it inside!"

She couldn't hold back any longer; she erupted. "You want the truth? Is that what you want?"

He threw his head back and laughed. "That's what I just. Fucking. _Said_. Repeating me _isn't_ an answer!"

"Yeah, well, you know what, the truth is...! The truth...The truth is..." She hunched forward, deflated, and cried into her hands. "The truth is...I really like you, Silver." Tears dripped between her fingers, unnoticed by the rain-soaked ground upon which they landed. "I like you so much...and I was so _scared_...Scared of what you would say now that you know. But that's not an excuse for the way I've acted, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry..."

Silver exhaled, defeated. Leaning forward, he laced his fingers and rested his mouth against them. "...It's not your fault," he sighed, "so please...stop crying...I understand Crystal's the one who forced me to stay out here, so...knock it off, all right?" He heard her sniffle, and he sighed again. "What a mess..." he muttered. Glancing sidelong at her, he twitched his foot on the ground, contemplating his next sentence. "So...I've got to ask...Why the hell would you like _me_ of all people? I mean," he said, rubbing his neck and turning back toward the Center, "I'm not exactly the nicest, most charming guy around or anything..."

Soul mopped her eyes and sniffed. "I dunno...I guess...Whenever I saw you, it always felt like you needed someone or something, and I realized that I wanted to _be_ that someone. I wanted to be what you needed."

He wasn't expecting such an astute answer; he was quite shocked. "...You've thought about this a lot, haven't you?"

Soul chuckled. "More than you'll probably ever know."

He faced forward again, weighing his thoughts. Selecting his words very carefully, he drew in a breath. "...If you had to get an answer from me right now...as to whether or not I feel that way about you too..._the answer would be no_."

She felt as if the world had dropped out beneath her. Her chest grew tight as her heart crumbled within, and she felt the tears start to form at the corners of her eyes. She knew it. She knew this would happen. Somewhere in her heart, she knew this would be the answer she would receive, and she felt a weight press down on her like she had never felt before.

"_But..._"

He emphasized this very heavily, rescuing Soul from her downward spiral, and she held her breath for the next word.

"I...I don't think it would be fair for me to tell you no," Silver continued. "After all, you've thought about your feelings a lot, so it's only fair that I give you the same courtesy." He stared at his feet. "That's what I tried to do while I was out here, but an hour of brooding in frigid conditions, soaked clothes, and a bad mood isn't enough. You see," he sighed, scratching his head, "you'll have to forgive me, but prior to all this...I just never thought about you in that way. I mean," he said, looking up at her, "you were my rival. I _hated_ you for a while, until I realized it was _my_ fault I kept losing. And hell, I just got adjusted to us being _friends_, and now I have a whole new set of feelings to consider?" He exhaled deeply. "But...I'm willing to give you the amount of consideration you deserve, if you'll give me the time."

"Of course!" Soul gasped, heart leaping. "Take as much time as you need!"

He sat quietly for a moment, thinking. The wind had died down, and the rain was falling at a much normal pace, although still in high volumes. He watched the waterfalls cascade off the umbrella's edge, pondering. "...You realize you might not get the answer you want..."

"I know," Soul said, gripping the bench. "But at least I'll know then that you gave me an honest shot."

Nodding, he glanced at the ground. "If...you don't want to come with me on this journey any more, I'll understa—"

"Are you crazy?" Soul said with a laugh. "Leave you so you can ignore your promise to consider my feelings?" She scoffed. "You're not getting rid of me that easily." Straightening, she gave him a solemn stare. "I'll follow you forever if I have to...I'll never stop waiting for an answer."

Why were his cheeks growing so warm all of a sudden? He shrugged it off and closed his eyes, grinning. "You may never get an answer, you know."

"Then I guess you'll never be rid of me."

He chuckled. "Then I guess you really will have to follow me forever."

"Well, duh. That's what I just. Effing. Said," she teased.

A stunned Silver laughed in spite of himself. "You really are strange, you know? Not many people would be interested in a guy like me. Not in that way, at least."

"Well, maybe that just means I'm meant for you," she said with a sly grin.

"Ha, maybe so, but you won't get a yes out of me that easily."

"We'll see," Soul said, standing. Turning to him, she extended a hand. "Come on. Let's go see if the showers are open. It's time we got you in out of this weather."

Debating it for a moment, he took her hand and stood, shouldering his bag. "Yeah. It's about damn time."

Later, as she stood in the stream of the shower, Soul reflected on the conversation. Despite her earlier emotions, she couldn't help but feel...disheartened. True, she hadn't been rejected (not technically, at least), but she was pretty much right back where she started: she had no idea how Silver felt about her. The only difference was Silver knew how _she_ felt. Well, she thought, that _was_ a pretty big difference. Holding her heart, she tensed with renewed resolve. No more moping around feeling sorry for herself! She was going to do everything in her power to influence Silver's opinion of her. She would make him fall in love with her if it was the last thing she ever did!

* * *

The following morning brought clear skies, a stark contrast to the temperamental weather of the day prior. It had taken every ounce of Soul's influence for Silver to forgive Crystal, although part of Soul suspected he only said so to appease her. The three shared a pleasant breakfast together and then prepared to part ways.

"So you're sure you don't want to come with us?" Soul asked as she packed the rest of her belongings in the room. "I mean, we're headed the same way, so you could travel with us part of the way, at least."

"Nah, I'm going to wait one more day for that storm to pass by Goldenrod, then I'll head that way on Chari," Crystal said. "Besides," she grinned, "I get the feeling I'd just be in the way."

Soul smiled weakly. "All right...Oh, before I forget, I wanted you to have this..." Digging in her pocket, she retrieved a slip of paper, which she handed to Crystal.

"What's this?" Crystal asked, unfolding the torn page.

"My PokéGear number," Soul said with a smile. "I figured we should exchange them so we can stay in touch."

"Ah, good thinking, let me give you mi...Wait..." She examined the page more carefully: printed beneath Soul's number in neat handwriting was a second number. "What's this other one, Sil-Sil's?"

"Oh, no, Silver doesn't have a PokéGear," Soul corrected with a devilish grin. "That's Gold's number."

Crystals face lit up a rosy pink. "Wh...Wha...?"

"You were going to ask me if I had it, weren't you?" Soul said mischievously. "I saw you eying my PokéGear yesterday when I came back from my shower. Did you look for it?"

"Of course not!" Crystal protested. "What kind of person invades someone's privacy like that?"

"But you _wanted_ to, didn't you?"

Crystal huffed and glanced at Soul, who gave her a look that said she understood completely. She sighed. "Thank-you, Soul," she said quietly.

"No problem!" she replied. "Just promise me you'll call him. You never know, he might be missing you, too."

"Yeah..." Crystal said in a way that expressed she clearly doubted it.

"Well, Silver is waiting for me, so just call my number later so I can get yours, okay?"

"Nn, sure. Bye, Soul. Tell Sil-Sil I said good-bye, too." The door to the room closed, and, sighing, Crystal flopped onto the bed. Holding the piece of paper above her head, she stared at the second phone number. She...She had to be insane to consider calling him..._right?_

* * *

"So, where to next?" Soul asked as she and Silver reached the Olivine northern exit.

"Well, Route 39 is pretty much countryside, with lots of farms and the like," Silver said, studying Soul's PokéGear map. "It's possible he could be hiding in the woods on Route 38 somewhere, but it's a long-shot. With winter approaching and the weather getting colder, I'd say he's probably in a cave somewhere, planning to ride it out until it warms up again. At least that's what I'd do."

"There are quite a few caves in Johto," Soul said, taking her PokéGear and poking at it. "Slowpoke Well and Union Cave in the south, Mt. Mortar in the north, Dark Cave in the east...It's a lot of ground to cover."

"What's the nearest one to here?" Silver asked, grabbing her arm to get a better look as he leaned over the map with her. He quickly noticed how awkward this was, though, and he let go to let her tinker with the map some more.

"Mt. Mortar, past Ecruteak," Soul replied, showing him the map.

"Then I guess that's where we're headed."

As they walked past the Olivine gate and into the rural Route 39, one thought tickled Soul's brain, and she couldn't help but let it escape her mouth.

"So, since both Crystal and Gold are already doing it, does that mean I should start calling you Sil-Sil too?"

"_...__Shut up_..."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"_That's it. I'm done._"


	26. Chapter 26: Glaciate

**Note: **My sincerest, absolute humblest apologies for the inexplicable lateness of this update. Life kind of swallowed me up there for a while, and I was just too busy to get this done. Really, I'm sorry, but I hope you enjoy this update's chapter. I'll try not to be this bad about an update again.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Six  
_Glaciate_

Mt. Mortar was a complete waste of time. Not only did they not find anything there after days of searching, but when the half a week it took them to get there was calculated in, the whole trip was an entire week wasted, something Silver repeated many times in the days that followed their leaving. Soul suggested that they Fly to their next destination, but Silver declined, saying that he "didn't want to risk having to play the hero again" should she fall asleep. Despite her asserting that was a one-time mistake, he was very adamant against the notion, and so they made their way south on foot.  
There wasn't much speaking to be had along the way, much to Soul's dismay. Despite her earlier assertions that she'd try her best to win Silver's heart, Soul found having pleasant conversations with Silver was becoming increasingly difficult as each day passed, due entirely to the fact that Silver's mood seemed to slip further and further into constant anger the more he dwelled on their lack of success in the hunt for his father. A month came and went over the course of their fruitless searching, and as they neared the end of November, Silver's mood reached an all-time peak of irritability. To be frank, however, Soul preferred this, since the alternative was much more unbearable.

Things were definitely not well between them. No words were exchanged outside of their discussions of where to travel next, but every so often Soul would catch Silver fixing her with the strangest glances...She knew he was probably thinking about her feelings in those moments, and while it was nice to know he was keeping his promise, it still struck Soul as a little bit..._creepy_. Not the consideration, that is, but the _staring_...the staring was just plain odd. Worst of all was whenever she caught him at it, he'd whip his head away so quickly that he obviously injured himself, because he'd walk ahead, rubbing his neck. Not knowing what he was thinking and knowing that she was constantly being ogled in this way ate away at her nerves, despite her best to rationalize it. At night, she dreamed about him watching her sleep, and the nightmares were so realistic that when she'd startle awake, she'd instinctively check his sleeping bag to make sure it had only been a dream.

It was on such an occasion as this that she awoke to a bitterly chilly morning, rubbing her stiff neck as she sat up in her sleeping bag. The ground made crunching noises as she did so, indicating that a hard frost had settled in over the night, and a glance around confirmed the frozen dew surrounding them. "That tears it..." Soul mumbled in a groggy tone, "this is the last time we're sleeping outside. It's nothing but Center sleeping until spring." She yawned and stretched, grabbing her winter coat, which she'd requested from her mother some few weeks ago. Sliding her arms into the long, flannel red coat, she stood in her sleeping bag and adjusted it over her clothes. Mornings like this called for lengthy warm showers, and the thought that she could not partake of such a luxury crushed her spirit as she set to the task of making breakfast. When she had the spare moment, she caught herself glancing at Silver, who lay sleeping still, huddled up from the cold. Doing so only caused her chest to clench inside, so she tried her best to keep her eyes averted. It was so strange; while sleeping, he looked so peaceful and calm, the complete opposite of how he'd been lately while awake. The corners of her mouth twitched in an effort to smile at this irony.

She knew better than to wake Silver for breakfast (it would just make him grouchy right off the bat rather than leading into that later), but luckily he awoke right around the time she was finishing the final preparations for their breakfast, and he joined her around the little fire she'd made, sitting on a rock across from her.

"Good morning," Soul said as she handed him a plate.

"It's effing cold," Silver grumbled, taking his breakfast.

"Well, it'll be December soon, so it's only natural..." Soul said, trailing off as Silver dug into his breakfast, ignoring her. After a tense minute had gone by, she straightened, renewing her resolve. "So, we're searching Union Cave today, right?"

"That would be why we're here, wouldn't it?" Silver said, not looking up.

"Right..." She looked around the deserted Route 33 where they'd made camp the night prior; usually it was pretty rainy in this area, but the cold weather must have staved off the rain, for not a drop was falling from the sky at the moment. "Well, I hope we find something in there today. I..." She faltered for a moment. "I'm sorry about the whole thing with Slowpoke Well yesterday." She was referring of course to their arrival at the famed well the day prior, only to discover that the town had taken an extra effort to keep people out of the well they held so dearly. This was obviously a result of Proton's exploits a year or so prior, when he used the Well as a place to extract the tails off of the local Slowpoke. This meant that it was inaccessible to them, which also meant it was inaccessible to Giovanni, meaning it was unnecessary for them to search it. Had it not been for Union Cave, their entire journey south would have been for naught, and Soul didn't want to imagine the fury Silver would have unleashed upon her if that were the case. "It's my fault that happened."

"_Damn right it is_," Silver muttered, low enough that Soul didn't hear him.

"I should have known Slowpoke Well would be off limits to the public by now," she continued.

"Yeah, seems like you don't know a lot lately..."

"_Excuse me?_"

"_Nothing_," he said harshly, shoveling more food into his mouth. "Hurry up and eat your damn breakfast so we can get started."

Her eyebrows twitching in irritation, she did as he asked, if only because her meal was starting to get cold.

* * *

"How can it be so effing cold, even in a cave?" Silver grumbled as they wandered in Union Cave some time later, guided as always by Soul's flashlight.

"Remember, I said it's almost December..." Soul muttered as she walked past him.

"What was that?"

"Oh, nothing."

Union Cave was oddly deserted, due most-likely to the frigid conditions, Soul surmised. It did, however, make their search easier, and the two of them scoured through the dark, damp cave together, their footsteps echoing off the cavern walls. Their search took them into the inner depths of the cave, past rock slides and deep pools of water that seemed bottomless from above. As the minutes turned into hours, Silver's disposition grew darker and more rigid, and Soul did her best to avoid provoking him. Even Chocobo, snuggled in Soul's arms, could sense the tension between the two, and he too remained silent toward Silver and even his master, lest he cause an explosion between them. When at last it seemed like they'd searched the entirety of the cave, they came across a doorway, illuminated by a cool glow that could only mean sunshine was on the other side.

Silver was the first to emerge, and he was greeted not by the sight of his father, or perhaps a hidden building in which his father might be concealing himself, but instead...

"Ruins..." Soul said as she emerged behind him. Fishing out her PokéGear, she brought up the map. "We're...in the Ruins of Alph. Funny, I didn't realize Union Cave connected to here..."

Silver stood before her, fists clenching, shoulders straight back. He seemed to be concentrating very heavily on something just beyond the trees that surrounded the ruins compound, trying with all his might not to explode.

"Well, it's always possible he could be hiding here in the Ruins," Soul continued, pocketing her PokéGear. "After all, outside of researchers, not many people visit this plac—"

"_No_."

"P...Pardon?"

"_No more_," Silver said, knuckles cracking. "_That's it. I'm done._"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"If you never wanted me to come with you, you should have just said so!"


	27. Chapter 27: Doubleslap

**Note:** Surprise! Early update to make up for last chapter's stupidly-late update. Enjoy~!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Seven  
_Doubleslap_

"You _what?_" Soul asked, not believing what she was hearing.

"What, are you deaf all of a sudden; I said I'm done," Silver said, strolling past her. "As in I quit. I'm through with this bull crap."

Something inside her snapped, like a branch she'd been standing on for far too long. Without hesitation, she snatched his arm and whirled him around. "What do you mean you quit? You can't just quit!"

"To hell I can't!" Silver shouted. "I'm not gonna spend the rest of my life freezing my ass off searching the whole world for a _stupid old man!_ He obviously doesn't want to be found, so let's leave him the hell alone!"

"Silver, we've barely started our search! You can't just give up so quickly!"

"And exactly what evidence have we found in this whole escapade, _hmm?_ A grody old button in a cave! That's it! And that doesn't even tell us anything about where he _is_, just where he's _been!_"

"Well, what else were you expecting?" Soul spat as Chocobo, sensing the on-coming argument, lept from her arms and chirped worriedly at her feet. "Did you think we'd be stumbling upon a clue every week or something?" The sudden reddening of his ears told her that this was exactly what he'd been thinking, or at least secretly hoping. She scoffed in disgust . "Honestly, Silver, I didn't think you were this much of a whiny-baby that you'd quit the second things started to look just the slightest bit difficult!"

"You shut the hell up! The only reason you came along with me in the first place is because you want to get in my pants!"

BAM! She struck him sharply in the face with the full force of her palm, knocking him backward. She stood there for a moment afterward, arm still held aloft, quaking with fury.

Silver recovered quickly, revealing the bright red mark she'd left on his cheek. He raised his arm, shouting, "You think I won't hit a girl? Try it again and see what happ—"

BAM! She slapped him a second time, across his other cheek, shoving him into the outside cave wall. "You listen to me and you listen _good!_" she shouted, whole body trembling. "I've given up my time, my effort, my supplies, and _all_ of my energy to help you! Not because of how I felt about you, but because I genuinely wanted to help you find your father! I've dealt with your mood swings, your attitude, and all your b-s, and God _knows_ I've done my best to do it with an effing smile on my face just to try and keep the peace! And _this_ is the thanks I get? You _mouthing off_ to me and threatening to _hit me?_"

"You hit me first!"

"_Doesn't matter!_"

"Yeah, well no one asked you to come on this trip with me, anyway!" Silver shouted.

"If you never wanted me to come with you, you should have just said so!"

Silver let out an exaggerated laugh, regaining his footing. "I _did!_ But _you_ wouldn't let me! 'I want to help,' you said, 'I'm _going_ with you,' you said! _Ha!_ I bet you never even cared about helping me at all! You just wanted to stay close to me because of your _stupid_ crush! As a matter of fact," he said, pointing accusingly at her, "I bet you never even saw my dad in the first place! You probably made the whole thing up just as an excuse to stick close to me!"

"_I did not!_" Soul yelled, angrier than ever. "I only told you I met him because I _thought_ you'd be interested to know he was still alive; how was I supposed to know you'd want to go on some _wild_ Zangoose chase around the whole world to try and find him?"

"Yeah, well it doesn't matter, anyway! I'm giving up on finding him and moving on!" He turned away and tightly gripped the strap of his backpack, adding in a quieter voice, "If he wanted to be in my life, he would've tried to find me. But he didn't, so there's no sense in me bothering to look for him."

"And what makes you so sure he hasn't tried to find you?" Soul argued. "Have you ever considered that as hard to as it is for you to find _him_, it's _twice_ as hard for _him_ to find _you?_"

"Say what you want, Soul, but I honestly don't care any more," Silver said, entering the mouth of the cave again.  
Gathering Chocobo, who'd added flustering his wings to his protest of the two humans' argument, Soul tore off after him. "And where exactly are _you_ going? We're not through talking yet!"  
"Like hell we're not!" Silver called back. "And stop following me; seriously, don't you have someone else you could bother?" he spat, whirling around.

"I _have_ to follow you; this is the only way out of the cave!"

"_Fine!_" Silver said, getting in her face. "_You_ go that way, and _I'll_ find my way out _this_ way!" He shoved past her, back out toward the Ruins.

A long, frustrated moan from Soul echoed off the cave walls, followed by stomping footsteps headed in Silver's direction. She exited the cave mouth to find him skulking off toward one of the buildings. "_Silver!_"

"Okay, seriously, now you're just being annoying," Silver said, whipping around. "_What_ in God's name do you want from me? Oh, wait," he said suddenly, "I know. The whole, 'you'll follow me forever,' thing, right?" he said, making finger-quotes. "Well, here, I'll solve that little problem for myself. I will _never_ feel about you the way you feel about me, because there is no force in this _universe_ that would _ever_ make me see you as anything more than an annoying, busy-bodied _pain in the ass_. I _don't_ like you, I've _never _liked you, and I never _will_ like you! So _leave me the hell alone!_"

This was obviously the breaking point, because she didn't say anything. She just stared at him with wide, glassy eyes, as if she'd mentally checked out, and when the first tear slid down her face, he realized that he had perhaps gone one step too far.

Inhaling deeply, Soul adjusted her shoulder strap and turned. "_Fine, Silver,_" she said in such a quiet voice that he almost didn't hear her. "_Have a nice life._" She and Chocobo disappeared together into Union Cave, leaving him alone amidst the broken buildings and overgrown grass.

Silver stood for a moment, dizzy from the adrenaline rush of the argument. He was free. After putting up with her for over a month, he was finally rid of her. No more listening to her chastise him about sleeping in, no more putting up with her constant cheeriness. He was done with her, and would probably never see her again, if she had anything to do with it. That meant he'd never have to look at her face again. Her face...The one that had smiled at him when no one else would...The one that had pushed him forward when he felt like he couldn't go on...The face that belonged to the only person in the whole world who probably cared about his existence. The face of his rival, the girl who'd always challenged him in a way he both hated and loved. That girl, who'd only been trying to help him...The girl he...

Fists clenching, Silver dashed toward the cave entrance and made his way through. Surely she hadn't gotten too far in; she'd probably found some corner to sit and cry, he was sure of it. As he neared the north exit, however, he grew more anxious as no sign of her turned up. Shielding his face as his eyes readjusted, Silver walked into the dark daylight on Route 32, gray clouds filling the overcast sky. But Soul was nowhere in sight. Turning around, he doubled back to the south exit, but to his dismay, she wasn't to be found there, either. He stood there in the cold on Route 33, misty puffs of breath rising in the crisp air. Large, icy flakes drifted down from above, landing on his red hair: the beginning of the first snowfall of winter. Soul was gone...and it was all his fault.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Hello?"


	28. Chapter 28: Chatter

**Note:** Here we are, another early update. Consider this an "intermission" from all the drama of last time. We'll be back to Soul and Silver's problems next time, but for now, enjoy this lovely little jump back in time to check up on another couple we know...

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Eight  
_Chatter_

Crystal lied on the bed of her rented room in the Pokémon Center and sighed heavily, staring at the piece of paper in her hand. It had been given to her by her new friend Soul, who had just left with Silver a few minutes ago. Crystal figured that by this point, they were headed toward the exit of Olivine City. The two seemed to have a lot of issues to work out, but Crystal was confident that Soul was a strong enough person to make it work out. A little unsure of herself, maybe, but she definitely seemed like the kind of person who could put up with Silver's nonsense. Silver seemed more willing to listen to her, too. Yeah, they'd be fine. It was her own love life Crystal wasn't so sure about.

It was no secret that she'd cared about Gold very deeply when she'd lived in New Bark Town. She would even go so far as to say that he was probably her first love. It'd been so long since she'd seen him, though...Maybe he was a completely different person after all the years that had passed. Maybe he'd forgotten about her. Yes, she was sure he'd forgotten her, otherwise he would have tried to contact her before. But she never received a single letter. Not that she sent any to him, she admitted. She got so caught up in her moving, and she was so unsure about what to write him, anyway...Still...She continued to stare at the slip of paper, upon which Soul had neatly printed Gold's PokéGear number. Should she call it...?

"Of course not," she said, answering her own thoughts as she rolled over on her stomach. She buried her face in the comforter, trying to think. This was the last thing she needed distracting her before the big Pokéathalon event. She should really get out and get some training done today...But for some reason, she just couldn't find the motivation. Maybe it was the chilly weather the previous day's storm had brought in, or maybe it was the poor sleep she'd had the night before, but she just didn't have the energy to get outside and exercise with her Pokémon, something she usually loved to do. She sat up and stared at the slip again and sighed. It was going to bother her until she got it done. Leaning over one side of the bed, she dug her PokéGear out of her bag.

Fingers poised above the numberpad, she glanced at the page and dialed. Slowly, she pulled the phone to her ear and listened as it rang. After a few seconds, the person on the other end answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"...Crystal? Is that you?"

"...Yeah."

"What the hell is she calling you for? You just saw her ten minutes ago," Silver's voice echoed faintly in the background.

Crystal sighed at herself as Soul scolded Silver on her end. "Yeah, sorry, I just figured I'd give you my number while I was thinking about it. Yeah. Uh-huh. Sorry if I interrupted anything. I'll talk to you later. Yeah. Mm-hmm, you too. Bye." Hanging up the phone, she flopped back on the bed. Even at the last second, she'd chickened out and dialed Soul's number instead. Rolling on her side, she glanced across the room, where her Raichu, Rai-Rai, lay snoozing in a patch of sunlight pouring in from the small window. She smiled a bit as his feet twitched, and she wondered for a moment what he must be dreaming about. Shaking her head briskly, she focused on the task at hand. Should she call him, or not?

Sitting up on the bed again, she sighed. "Ah, what the hell," she muttered, dialing the number. As she brought it to her ear, she added, "At most, if he doesn't recognize me, I'll just say I have the wrong number..."

She waited. And waited. And waited. No one on the other side answered. After about four or five rings, the automated voice mail kicked in, and she hung up the phone. "Well, that's that," she said to no one in particular. "Can't say that I didn't try, right? I mean, it's not my fault that he didn't pick up. I bet he just didn't recognize the number, so he didn't answer. Yeah..." A loud chiming sound emanated from her lap, and she fumbled her PokéGear to answer the call. A glance at the caller ID made her freeze: it was Gold's number, returning her call. After a mini-debate as to whether or not she should answer, she clicked the green button and put the device to her ear. "Hello?"

"Yeah, I had a missed call from this number?" a voice much deeper than she remembered said on the other end.

"Oh, er...Sorry, I think I called your number by mistake," Crystal said without even thinking, her heart pounding in her ears.

"Ah, no worries; it happens. Although...you know, your voice sounds kind of familiar, now that I think about it. I don't mean to sound creepy or anything, but could you say something real quick?"

"Something," Crystal repeated, resisting a grin.

The young man on the other end laughed. "You know, that reminds me of this girl I used to know...She was always teasing me about stuff like that. You...You wouldn't happen to be her, would you?"

"Depends," Crystal said, palms starting to sweat. "What was her name?"

The low drone of a boat horn in the harbor masked his reply. It wasn't until she thought about it for a moment that she realized she'd not only heard it in the distance outside, but through the phone line as well.

"Ah, sorry about that," the boy apologized. "I'm getting off the boat in Olivine, so it's a little noisy."

"O...Oh, is that so?" Crystal said, already gathering her things. "Are you from Olivine?" Scooping her sleeping Raichu off the ground, she sprinted out the door.

"Oh, no," the boy said. "I'm from a little place called New Bark Town. I'm sure you've never heard of it."

"No, I've heard of it," Crystal said, hastily slipping on her shoes with one hand as she hobbled across the PokéCenter's main lobby.

"Oh yeah? Guess Professor Elm's Pokémon Lab has helped put New Bark Town on the map."

"That Lab's still pretty new, isn't it? It's only been there a couple years," she said, stalling for time as she exited the Center.

"Nn, it's been there maybe about eight years, tops. I was pretty young when they built it."

"So, this girl you were talking about...Was she a friend of yours in New Bark Town?" Crystal asked, trying to hide her labored breathing as she jogged toward the harbor.

"Yeah, but it's been so long since I've seen her that she's probably forgotten about me," the boy said with a sigh.

"How can you be sure?" Crystal asked, reaching the dock and scanning the crowd of disembarking people for the boy. "I mean, have you ever tried to contact her?"

"Well, no...But—" Crystal heard the last bit echo as feedback as the boy on the phone walked past her, hidden amongst the crowd, "she never tried to contact me, so I guess she just forgot."

"You never know, maybe she was just too scared to call you," Crystal said, following behind him at a short distance. He was taller than she remembered, although this was natural, of course. Her heart pounded in her ears as she took in the sight of him, walking so close to her yet completely unaware of her presence.

"Nah, not this girl. She was always gung-ho and confident," Gold said to the mystery girl on the other end of his phone call, strolling along with one hand in his jacket pocket. "I sure do miss her, though...Do you know she was my first real crush?"

Crystal's heart leapt, and she swallowed to wet her dry throat. "Really? Well, then you should definitely get in contact with her somehow."

"Yeahhhh, but how am I supposed to do that?" Gold sighed.

"_You could start by turning around._" Crystal hung up the phone and held her breath as the boy stopped, looked at his PokéGear in puzzlement, and then turned slowly. She was standing only a few feet from him, so he spotted her instantly.

Gold grinned. "Oh, thank God," he said, holding his chest and exhaling. "I was beginning to worry I was pouring my heart out to a complete stranger."

Crystal laughed. "Nope, it was just me." She eyed the ground and added, "Although I haven't seen you in so long, I might as well be a stranger."

"Mmm, maybe," Gold said, taking a few steps forward, "but it's never too late to make up for that." He stood before her, a good head taller than her; a stark difference to when they were children. "You know," he said, closing his eyes and grinning, "I just came back from your house in Kanto, actually."

"R...Really?" Crystal asked, surprised.

"Mm-hmm," Gold said with a nod. "Got a tip that your folks were living in Pewter, so I took off for there a few days ago. Your mom said I'd just missed you by a day. Said you'd come back here to Johto for the Pokéathalon, and," he laughed and pulled a piece of paper from his pocket, "she gave me your PokéGear number. I was thinking about calling it soon, but you beat me to the punch. But, how...?"

Digging in her pocket, Crystal removed the slip of paper with Gold's number on it. "I ran into your friend Soul yesterday, and she gave me your number."

Gold grinned fondly. "Ah, good ol' Soul. I'll have to thank her...So," he said, squatting a bit to examine the groggy, confused Raichu in Crystal's arms, "who's this little guy? One your Pokémon, right?"

"O-Oh, yes, this is Rai-Rai," she said, allowing the Pokémon to drop from her arms and stretch. Crystal glanced at Gold's feet and spotted an Azumarill peering around her master's leg. "And this is your Azumarill, right?"

Gold beamed. "Technically, she's yours."

"Wh...What?"

"I mean, you were the one who found her Egg the day we saved that Gyarados," Gold said, kneeling beside his beloved Pokémon. He petted her head, and she happily purred in response. "So technically, she belonged to you first."

Crystal gasped, covering her mouth. "You mean...this Azumarill was in _that_ Egg?"

"Well, she started out as an Azurill," Gold said as Crystal knelt beside his Pokémon as well, "but she eventually got to this point with some training. She was my first official Pokémon, and..." He blushed, fidgeting his shoe on the boardwalk. "She was a constant reminder of you. After all, you said so long as I had her, we'd always be friends."

Crystal met eyes with him briefly and then looked away, embarrassed. "So...I was your first crush, eh?" she teased, glancing side-long at him with a mischievous grin.

"Pfft," Gold snorted, "like I wasn't yours."

"Wha...I have no idea what you're talking about," Crystal said, standing and turning her back to him.

"Yeah right! The only reason you called me after all this time was because you still have feelings for me, right? _Riiiiight?_"

"Honestly, you're delusional," Crystal said as she walked away, a smile cracking across her features. "Why would anyone like a silly boy like you?"

"Oh, I dunno," Gold said, strolling along beside her, "maybe it's my dashing good looks and unshakable charisma?"

Crystal laughed as her hand brushed his, and they wove their fingers together. "_Maybe so._

_

* * *

_

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"Oh...it's you, Soul."


	29. Chapter 29: Rattled

**Note:** Sorry for the delay; been busy and distracted lately. Here we are, back from our intermission and catching up with our main characters again. Enjoy!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Twenty-Nine

_Rattled _

"Bog, use your Ice Punch!"

A blue fist shone with a chilly aura, gathering power from the frozen air around them, and then connected into a wild Tangela's face. Bog the Quagsire jumped back and waited for his opponent to rise once more. It climbed to its feet with what little strength it could muster and then slumped off, on the verge of collapse, signifying that Bog was the victor.

The female trainer smiled behind her blue scarf. "Great job, Bog; return!" A red beam of light shot from the Pokéball in her red gloved hand, and Bog disappeared. She then turned to the other Pokémon beside her. "I think that's enough training for today, Chocobo."

Clawed hands reached up and removed the odd black headgear from the Pokémon's head, and Chocobo the Combusken readjusted his plumage with a spare hand. He then turned to his trainer and handed the Exp. Share back to her.

"Thank-you," Soul said, replacing the item in her bag. Retracting her hand suddenly with a whispered exclamation of, "Ow," Soul cautiously returned her hand to her bag to retrieve the culprit. What she removed made her eyes glaze over in deep thought. She held the small Team Rocket pin in her hand for a long while, turning it over and over, examining every inch of it. Silver had given it to her for safe keeping, and after their fight, she'd forgotten to give it back to him.

It had already been three weeks since she'd parted ways with Silver, and in those three weeks, she'd done everything she could to distance herself from him and every thought of him. She'd been to visit her mother for a few days, and then she'd headed straight-way to Kanto to finally start Chocobo's training; Silver had completely distracted her from doing so back in October. As a matter of fact, Silver was nothing but a gigantic distraction. She was happy to be rid of him, truthfully. And yet, as she scrutinized the pin, once worn by Silver's father, she felt warm tears well in her eyes, the same tears she fought each night as she lied in bed with a sharp pain in her chest. She felt the achiness in her heart start to swell, but before it could properly consume her, she shoved the pin back into the deep recesses of her bag and wiped her eyes clean. She turned to her Combusken, who was staring at her with a worried expression. "It's fine, I'm all right. It didn't even hurt." Chocobo flustered at her, as if to say the prick from the pin wasn't what he was truly concerned about, but his complaint was overshadowed by an expression of slight surprise from behind them.

"Oh...it's you, Soul. Didn't think I'd see you around here again."

Soul turned and let out a small, involuntary gasp: there in the cave entrance into the depths of Mt. Silver stood Red, his Pikachu perched happily on his shoulders. He had flecks of snow on the brim of his red hat, which he dusted off as he tromped through the snow-covered grass to join her and Chocobo. He was dressed abnormally light for the bitter December weather, trading his short sleeved black shirt for a long sleeved version with his usual jeans and red vest, but considering that Soul was still quite cold while wearing her thick flannel longcoat, it was a wonder Red wasn't sick because of dressing so improperly for the weather.

"O...Oh, Red!" Soul said, sweating a little. She shouldn't be so surprised to see him; after all, she _was_ training near Mt. Silver, which was well-known to be Red's training territory. "It's good to see you again. How have you been?"

"Okay I guess," Red said with a shrug. The seventeen-year-old smiled a bit as he stood before her, a good head taller than her. "You been training out here, or did you come to see me?"

"Just training, I'm afraid," Soul said, indicating her new recruit beside her. "We were just calling it quits for today. Is that what you were doing too?"

"Nn, yeah, a blizzard's supposed to come through tonight, so I can't camp out like I usually do," Red said with a sigh, absentmindedly scratching his Pikachu's chin.

"Ehhh, you camp outside in this kind of weather?" Soul gasped. "It's way too cold for that, isn't it?"

"Nah," Red said with a dismissive wave, grinning. "I can imagine for most normal trainers it would, but," he snickered, "I'm no normal trainer, you know."

Soul was reminded briefly of Leaf's admonishments about how Red was a little full of himself, and she smiled weakly. "Well, you're welcome to join Chocobo and me back at the Pokémon Center. The nurse there lets me use the kitchen, so I can make us some stew."

"Nn, sounds good," Red said with a nod.

* * *

"...And that makes you the Old Maid!" Soul said happily as she paired her last card later that night as she and Red knelt near a table covered in playing cards.

Red let out a sigh and threw the Old Maid card with a Wobbuffet on it. "Jeez, that's three in a row for you now."

Soul gave him a toothy grin. "You just suck at this game, I guess."

"It would've been different if you would've agreed to play strip poker..." Red muttered, looking away with a sinister glint in his eye.

"Absolutely not!" Soul said, leering at him as she gathered the cards back into a deck again. She shuffled the cards together and brightened. "So, wanna play another round?"

"Mmm, it's getting kind of late, don't you think?"

Soul glanced at the clock on the wall; Red was right; the two hands were joining together on the twelve at the very top of the clock. The nurse, happy to have some visitors in her usually empty Center, had retired to her personal quarters hours ago, leaving the two alone in the Center lobby to talk and play cards. She'd been having a good time chatting with Red; she'd smiled more in the hours spent with him than she had in the past two months.

Red stretched and rubbed the back of his neck. "Man, first you beat me in battle, then you beat me at cards...I must be slipping or something..."

Soul's eyebrows raised. That's right, she'd almost forgotten. "Actually, about that..."

"Hm?" Red said, scratching his Pikachu behind the ears as he lay dozing on the couch behind him.

Soul eyed her hands as she wrung them in her lap. "I've been telling everyone that I lost that match."

Red's eyebrows jumped. "Why would you do something like that? Any other trainer would be bragging to the heavens that they beat me. I mean, sure, our match was close, but you still won, Soul."

Soul's face flushed slightly. "I guess...Well, there isn't a trainer in Kanto or Johto who doesn't know your name, Red. Everyone idolizes you and aspires to be just like you."

"Well, of course they do," Red said with a smug grin, scratching his cheek.

Soul squirmed a bit; she was stroking his ego too much. "Anyway...I guess I just wanted to preserve your legacy. Or maybe..." She held her chin in thought. "Maybe I just didn't want to draw attention to myself as a trainer that had defeated the 'legendary Red.' Maybe a combination of those two."

Red stared at her for a moment, surprised, and then he let out a chuckle, closing his eyes. "You know, you really are some kind of woman, Soul," he said.

"E...Eh?"

"I mean, you're an amazing trainer, a great cook, a humble person, and cute, too." He leaned closer, giving her a smooth smile. "Keep that sort of thing up, and I'll be hard pressed not to fall for you."

Soul's stomach tightened, and as she stared into the brown eyes of the older boy, an image of the same charming smile on the face of another boy floated to the top of her mind. Her chest began to ache, and her eyes watered. "I...I should be getting to bed..." Soul said awkwardly, standing. "I'll see you in the morning, Red."

"Hm? Oh, sure," Red said, climbing to his feet. "Yeah, it is pretty late." He gathered his snoozing Pikachu off the couch and walked with her to the hallway that branched off into the bedroom section of the Center. "Soul," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable..."

"Oh, no, it's fine, really," Soul lied with a meek smile. "I'm flattered, really, even if you were just saying it."

"Right..." Red said distantly, nodding. "Well, it's something to think about, at least. Good night." He took a left down the hallway and disappeared into the nearest room.

Soul stood silently in the hallway for a moment, her body trembling. Finally willing herself to move after a minute or two passed, she went to her designated room, where she found Chocobo snoozing in the second bed. As the door closed with a click, she leaned against it and slid down to the floor. Images flashed in her mind, images she'd been blocking for her own sanity. The boy she'd cherished so much despite his harshness, the boy she loved for all his complexity...His face and all its many expressions washed over her, and tears dripped off her chin and into her lap. Cupping her face in her hands, she sobbed uncontrollably into them. Falling for her? How could she possibly accept the advances of any other man? The very notion made her ill. And yet there she had been, smiling and laughing with that other boy, pretending she wasn't broken and injured inside. She'd been running from it, ignoring it all this time. Coughing and spluttering, she clutched at her shoulders and leaned forward, suppressing a sobbing scream.

"_Silver...!_" she gasped in a whispered shout. "You idiot, why do I still need you so much?" Soul curled in a ball on the floor, choking and crying, repeating the name of the man she yearned for over and over again.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Soul..."


	30. Chapter 30: Substitute

**Note:** Sorry this is late; had wisdom teeth surgery last week and it kinda mucked up the update. ^^; But we're back now, so let's get to it.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty

_Substitute _

"So, what are you making for dinner tonight, Soul?" Red asked as the two trekked down the road on Route 28, he and Chocobo carrying Soul's shopping bags from their late-afternoon trip into Viridian City.

"I was thinking about making that stew again," Soul said with a smile, handing a cookie from her bag to Red's Pikachu, who was perched in his usual spot on his trainer's shoulder.

Red shifted the bags to carry them behind his head instead; his Pikachu, thrown from his shoulder, leapt to Soul's instead, where he settled to enjoy his snack, grumbling a bit at his master. "I was hoping that's what you were buying ingredients for," Red said with a grin. "Can't wait for tonight, then."

"Well, since the Center will be closed starting tomorrow for Christmas Eve, I thought I should make it again," Soul said, smiling.

"Oh yeah, that's right..." Red said, looking up in thought. "I'd almost forgotten, since most Center's don't usually close on holidays."

"Nn, yeah," Soul said, nodding. "But since this Center is small and doesn't get a lot of traffic, it's fine for them to close for two days."

"Yeah, I guess that's true."

Soul looked up at the evening sky. Christmas Eve...It was hard to believe it was that time already. The days since she'd met up with Red had passed so peacefully; she'd spent most of that time with him, training Chocobo and just enjoying his company. Red seemed to like to have someone to talk to, since he was usually by himself, and Soul would be lying if she said she didn't like talking to him, too. But...anytime she felt herself drawing closer to him with her heart, she felt a deep stab of pain, and Silver's face swam into her subconscious. She liked Red, but she just couldn't allow herself to feel anything more toward him, which frustrated her, to be frank. Why should she still care about a man who had abandoned her? And yet she couldn't erase him from her mind, no matter how much she tried. It bothered her. She was truly starting to wonder if she'd been pining after Silver for so long that he'd damaged her emotionally, and that the prospect of a "normal" relationship with a straight-forward guy like Red was just too "simple" for her heart that was so used to things being far more complicated than they needed to be.

A PokéGear ringtone roused her from her thoughts; it was Red's, and he fumbled in his jacket pocket for the device. Red glanced at the caller ID and sighed. "Ah crap..." Raising the phone to his ear, he answered it with a bored expression on his face. "What do _you_ want?"

"_Don't you smart off to me right off the bat, you jack-ass!_" the woman's voice shouted from the receiver. The voice was oddly familiar to Soul.

"Jeez, you don't have to yell..." Red muttered, digging in his ear.

"Where the hell are you?" the female voice demanded.

"The same place I always am. Where are _you?_"

"You know _damn_ well where I am! I'm where you're _supposed_ to be, in Pallet Town!"

"Is...Is that Leaf?" Soul asked, pointing at the phone.

"Oh, you met my noisy cousin, Soul?" Red asked, surprised. "Here, I'll put her on speaker then..." He hit a button on the PokéGear, and Leaf's voice magnified in volume, not that it had been very difficult to hear her prior.

"Wait, _Soul?_ Soul is with _you?_" Leaf asked, her voice aghast.

"Hey, Leaf, good to hear from you again," Soul said with a smile, waving; she wondered immediately after why she'd done so, since it wasn't like Leaf could see her waving.

"_Soooooouuuuulllll!_ Why are you skulking around Mt. Silver with that _jack-ass?_ I thought you said you were staying in New Bark Town!"

"Yeah, love you too, bitch," Red muttered under his breath.

"Well, yeah, when I talked to you last, I was staying with my mom, but that was a few weeks ago..." Soul explained. "I left there after a few days."

Leaf moaned on the other end of the line. "Dammit, now my directions were all wrong..." she muttered, more to herself than to either of them.

"Hm? Directions? What are you talking about, Leaf?"

"Er...Never mind that, Soul. I'm sure it'll work itself out. Now, Red," her voice became more bossy and assertive, "get your ass home to Pallet Town, pronto!"

"I don't want to if you're going to be there..." Red mumbled, shooting a grin at Soul, who smiled only slightly. "Besides, can you and Green afford to be slacking off like this, anyway? You're supposed to be the Tower Tycoon, and Green's a Gym Leader, and yet you're both abandoning your positions at the drop of a hat. The two of you will never beat me if you take off every little holiday."

There was a loud clattering noise accompanied by Leaf screaming profanities and the sound of banging on a hard surface. They heard Green faintly cry out in the background, "Leaf, it's not like he can feel it if you beat up the phone!"

Red laughed loudly. "It's so easy to get her riled up," he said to Soul, snickering. "She's such a hothead."

"Still, you shouldn't tease her so much," Soul said with a weak smile. "She'll grow to hate you if you keep that up."

"Oh, it'll be fine," Red said with a dismissive wave. "It's how she and I keep our rivalry going."

"_Soul!_" Leaf's voice boomed from the device. "_Are you listening to me, Soul?_"

"Y...Yes..."

"Don't you _dare_ use this asshole as a rebound, you got me? He's not worth it, so don't even think about it!" Soul could hear the accusational finger pointing in Leaf's voice.

"Rebound?" Red asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's nothing," Soul said, her face flushing. "Ah, look, here's the Center..." She was right; the Pokémon Center at the base of Mt. Silver was only a few yards ahead.

"Right...well, I'll let you go for now, Leaf. Tell my mom I'll be there tomorrow," Red said.

"Hey, Red, wait a minu—" Red hung up the phone, and Leaf was disconnected.

The two took the remaining steps toward the Center in awkward silence, Soul fidgeting with the strap of her bag.

"...So...I'm a rebound?"

Soul blushed a deep scarlet and faltered. "N-No! It's not like that at all! Besides," she said, tucking her hair behind her ear out of nervous habit, "you and I are just friends, anyway, right? I mean, I'm so much younger than you and all..."

"Right..." Red said, staring off into the distance. He turned to her and held out the bag. "Well, Pikachu and I are going to go do some training for now. You're going to start on dinner, right?"

"Mm-hmm," Soul nodded, taking the bag from him. "It'll be ready in an hour or two."

"Sounds good," Red said with a grin. "Come on, Pikachu."

Red's Pikachu clung to Soul's hat for a moment in protest, but after a stern glare from his master, he begrudgingly leapt from her shoulder and followed after him into the tall grass.

Soul watched him walk away, lost in thought. Rebound...Maybe...Maybe that was why she couldn't bring herself to have feelings for Red. She liked him, and she could probably love him, if the timing were right. She knew, however, that if she allowed herself to do so, a part of her would always wonder about how it would have been to have a relationship with Silver. And also...she just couldn't shake the feeling that her attraction to Red stemmed only from her recently-broken heart, and she was just, as Leaf warned, using Red as a substitute for how she wished Silver would treat her. She hated it. She hated that her weak heart was so fickle. She felt the familiar pain in her chest swell, and she stiffled her thoughts.

Shouldering her shopping bag, she turned to Chocobo. "Come on, Chocobo; let's get in out of this cold and get started on dinner."

* * *

Soul added the last of the chopped vegetables from her cutting board to the pot filled with bubbling liquid and turned down the heat. "And now we let it simmer!" she said with a smile to Chocobo, who crowed happily in response. Soul rather liked cooking; it was something she could focus her whole self on and forget about all her troubles and worries. No fretting about Silver and her unshakable attraction to him, no pondering about her growing feelings for Red, just complete immersion in her recipe and in the process of preparing the ingredients. It was very therapeutic, and it put her in a good mood. She strolled to the kitchen exit and back toward the main lobby, humming to herself as Chocobo followed behind her. Perhaps she'd go help the nurse decorate the front desk so it would look more festive. Yes, that sounded like a good idea. As she approached the main lobby, however, she heard a different voice. A visitor, all the way out in the middle of nowhere?

"...Sorry, but I'm looking for someone; I was told she's been here. She's about this tall, usually wears a white hat with a red bow, and carries around a Torchic."

Soul rounded the corner and froze, Chocobo bumping into her back.

The young boy at the counter continued his explanation to the nurse. "She has brown hair, usually in pigtails, and her name is—" The red-headed boy saw movement in his peripheral and turned. The two stared at one another for what seemed an eternity, and then Silver swallowed. "Soul..."

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"She couldn't forget all the pain he caused her so easily...could she?"


	31. Chapter 31: Confusion

**Note:** ARGH. Sorry this is so late; illness + writer's block from heck + my eternal vice, video games were a deadly combo that resulted in this being late. I apologize. For now, though, I hope you'll enjoy the update.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-One

_Confusion_

Soul felt a dizzying rush wash over, leaving her lightheaded, as her mind whirred and twittered at a rate she could barely comprehend. There he was, the boy she'd been longing to see, the boy who'd abandoned her, standing at the counter, staring at her, a mixture of surprise, concern, and relief on his face. But why? Why was he here? Why had he only just now come looking for her? She'd wanted to see him so badly. Not a single day had passed without him flitting into her mind at least once, but seeing him standing there, awaiting her response, filled her heart with relief...but also anger. She couldn't so easily forget all that he'd said to her, could she? How he'd spurned her and said he could never love her? She couldn't forget all the pain he caused her so easily...could she?

Chocobo's clawed hand touched hers, startling her, and she turned to him. The Pokémon chirped curiously at her, as if to ask why she hesitated. She smiled and gave his hand a squeeze. Turning to Silver and giving him the most ambivalent expression she could muster, Soul took in a breath. "Oh...hi, Silver."

Silver's eyebrows twitched downward, puzzled, and he cleared his throat. "Yeah...hi."

The awkward silence that followed was thick and heavy. Both looked away from the other, Silver rubbing the back of his neck and Soul tucking her bangs behind her ear on one side. The clock on the wall ticked loudly in the stillness.

The nurse at the desk cleared her throat, causing both of them to startle; they'd obviously forgotten her presence. "So, is this a friend of yours, Soul?" the nurse asked politely.

"Ye—"

"_No._"

Soul's denial cut across Silver's confirmation with icy disdain, and he clenched his jaw as the awkward moment passed.

"Right..." the nurse said, glancing suspiciously between the two. "Well, I'll leave you to talk to your," she made finger quotes, "'not friend.'" Winking at Soul, who only grinned weakly in response, the nurse turned and disappeared into the room behind the front desk.

Alone in silence once more, Silver and Soul avoided eye contact, waiting for the other to make the first advance. Finally, unable to bear the quiet any longer, Soul turned and said, "I have to go check on the stew. If you have something to say, you can come with me to the kitchen." She then disappeared around the corner. Chocobo hesitated, glancing between his master and Silver, before he pursued her.

Swallowing and taking a deep breath through his nostrils, Silver followed suit.

The sounds of pots clanging and running water greeted him before he pushed open the swinging doors to join her in the small kitchen. Everything from the counter tops to the appliances was stainless steel, so it didn't take much effort to make noise anywhere in the room, but Soul seemed to be flourishing and slamming things just so to make the maximum amount of clattering she could, all the while muttering to herself. She plunked another dish into the sink and plunged her hands into the water to wash it. Glancing over her shoulder at him, Soul wiped her brow with her wrist and sighed. "Well then, what do you want?" she asked.

Silver sighed and put his hands in his pockets. "I take it you're still mad at me, then..." he muttered.

"Mad?" she said, freezing in place. "_Mad?_" she repeated, slamming a pot in the sink and whirling around. "I was _mad_ at you four weeks ago when you _gave up_ and ran me off! Now I'm just...! I'm just..." She hesitated, shoulders quaking. Tears welled in the corners of her eyes, and she rubbed furiously at them. _Now I'm just confused_ were the words that remained in her throat, unable to escape. She turned and started washing dishes once more, trying to suppress her sobs into small, jagged inhales.

Unsure of what he should do, Silver took a small step forward, arm outstretched, but then hesitated and withdrew, eyes on the ground. Eyebrows tensing, he closed his eyes and turned away. Never in his life had he been more ashamed of and frustrated with himself. Everything was his fault. What could he possibly say to her to make it okay? Was there even such a thing that could be said? He glanced at the back of her pigtailed head, and his chest grew tight. Straightening, he clenched his fists and took a deep breath.

* * *

"Oh, Red!" the nurse said as the teenager ambled into the Center, Pikachu perched in his usual location. "I'm surprised to see you; Soul said you wouldn't be coming back in until closer to dinner."

"Mm, I decided I'd come see if Soul wanted to do a bit of training with me before that," Red said with a bit of a grin.

The nurse gave him a pensive look, and then in a gossipy tone said, "Ohhh, I don't think she'll be too interested. You see," she leaned over the desk a bit, cupping one side of her mouth with her hand, "I think her ex-boyfriend is here."

Red's eyebrows leapt. "Oh really?"

The nurse nodded. "Oh yes. Showed up asking if I'd seen her, and when they made eye contact, it was like the whole room froze. She didn't seem too happy to see him, but when I came back, they'd disappeared into the kitchen with one another." The nurse turned and straightened a pile of documents, more so she'd have something to do with her hands than for the necessity of organizing them. "The more curious side of me wants to go listen at the door, but it would be rude to Ms. Soul. After all, it's none of my business, righ—Red?"

She'd turned to address him but discovered herself alone in the room once more. "Now where do you suppose he...?"

* * *

Soul dried her eyes on her sleeve, sniffling. She couldn't let herself fall to pieces like this in front of Silver. She had to stay strong. Silver said some truly horrible things to her, and she couldn't ignore that, despite the fact that her heart raced with rapture every time she looked at him.

Silver took a step forward. "Soul, I wanted to apol—"

"Heyyy, Soul, are you in here?" Red called from the hallway before bursting through the kitchen doors. He stopped abruptly as the two turned to stare at him, Silver with puzzlement and Soul with shock. Red's eyes flickered to Soul's, noting their puffiness, and then he blinked a little, feigning pleasant surprise. "Oh, so here you are. And you have a visitor! Sorry, I didn't know," he lied. He took a step toward Silver and extended his hand. "Name's Red. You a friend of Soul's?"

His face impassive and his body numb, Silver stared slack-jawed at the older boy, as if he couldn't quite decide how to address his presence in the room. Red seemed to take his bewilderment as star-struck awe, because he grinned and chuckled in a practiced tone of humility.

"Ah, you must be thinking, 'Does he mean _the_ Red?'" he said with a grin. "Yes, I _am_ the Red you've undoubtedly heard about." He clapped Silver on the shoulder. "But don't worry—I'm human, just like you." He side-stepped Silver and directed his attention to Soul, whose face was devoid of color and horrified. "Stew smells like it's coming along well," Red said to her, investigating the pot on the stove. He turned to Silver with a bemused expression. "Will you be joining us for dinner, then?"

"No, that's—"

"Oh, come on, it'll be fine," Red said, waving dismissively. "After all, I'm sure there's plenty, right, Soul?" He glanced at Soul, who opened and closed her mouth a few times only to have nothing come out. "Right, it won't be a problem. Say...er, I'm sorry, I didn't get your name..."

"...It's Silver," he said, popping his jaw. The malice in his voice was ridiculously apparent, but Red either didn't notice or ignored it.

"Right, so, Silver, have you checked in for a room yet?"

"No, but I—"

"Well, then, here, I'll take you!" Red said, slapping an arm around his shoulders and guiding him toward the exit. "Let's leave the lady to her cooking, all right?" Before exiting the room, he glanced over his shoulder and winked at Soul, and then he disappeared through the swinging doors with Silver, his ever-devoted Pikachu still perched on his shoulder.

As the doors swished back to a close, Soul stood there, so confused and conflicted that her head throbbed. Sliding against the cabinet, she sunk to the floor to process what had just happened. Silver and Red...the boy she had loved who rejected her, and the boy she felt an ever-growing attraction toward...they were together in the same building. And Silver...Soul knew Silver hated Red already...She put her face in her hands and let out a loud, "Aaaaarrrrrggghhhhh!" This would not end well. She just knew it.

* * *

"So, Silver..." Red said as they walked down the hall shoulder-to-shoulder.

"What?" Silver said in a dark tone, not enjoying the closeness in the slightest.

Red glanced over his shoulder to ensure they were no longer in earshot of the kitchen, and then, releasing his grip, he dropped all pretense of charm. "So you're Soul's ex?" he asked, a sudden, dangerous glower in his eyes.

Silver's face pinkened. "Wait...what? No, I'm not her...Why, did she say I was?" The raised inflection in his voice at this question seemed to indicate a certain hopefulness.

Red sighed and scratched his head, ruffling the brunette hair underneath his red cap. "No, but...From the moment I met up with her again, I could tell something was bothering her. She kept hiding it behind a smile, but I could sense something...or _someone_...was on her mind." His eyes shot to Silver, who swallowed. "So, you're saying you're _not_ her ex, then?"

"No," Silver said, matching Red's glare.

Red's eyebrows twitched a little, studying his opponent. "Good. Then you won't mind if _I_ make a move for her, then." He shoved a hand in his jacket pocket and turned down the hallway, absentmindedly scratching his Pikachu behind the ears out of habit. "Come on, the rooms are this way."

Silver glared at the back of the older boy's head, clenching and unclenching his fists. "...Just who the hell does he think he is...?"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**  
"_Will you come with me?_"


	32. Chapter 32: Rivalry

**Note:** With deep shame for its tardiness, I release this chapter almost two months after the previous one. I apologize, but life is a cruel mistress. All that aside, I hope you enjoy the update.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Two

_Rivalry_

"Soul, do you need any help getting ready for dinner?" Red asked as he poked his head in the kitchen some time later.

Soul turned, a pile of bowls, cups, and silverware in her arms. "Hm? Oh, no, I've got it..." she said, shifting her weight so the stacked cups containing the spoons didn't topple over.

"Doesn't look like it," Red said with a chuckle as he crossed the short distance and relieved her of the items. "By the way, the nurse said she had to make a run into Viridian to assist with an emergency at the local Center, so she won't be joining us for dinner. It'll just be us and that Silver guy."

Soul gulped. _Perfect_, she thought. _Just perfect_.

Red set the stack on the counter and separated the glasses. "Honestly, I wish it was just the two of us, but not much I can do about it."

The pit in Soul's stomach grew tighter. Secretly, she wished the same, but whether or not that was because it would be less stressful or because she genuinely wanted to be alone with Red, she just couldn't decide.

"Just you and me, alone, having dinner...and maybe the power would cut out and we'd have to eat by candlelight..." Red continued, a wistful sort of air in his voice.

"Oh, come on now, Red, really," Soul said in a huffy voice as she poured water in each glass. "You shouldn't say things like that just to joke with me."

Red stared at the counter for a moment and then turned. "_Who said I was joking?_"

Soul blinked a few times, caught off guard. "R...Red..." she stumbled, face pinkening as he stared at her with increasing intensity. "Don't..."

"No, I mean it," Red said more firmly. "Sure, I may have been just teasing in the beginning when I said I could fall for you...but...being with you over these past two weeks...I actually did. Soul...I really like you."

A sharp pang shot through her chest, filling her up with a familiar warmth. It was just as she feared. He did have feelings for her, and what was worse...hearing him say it out loud, so confidently and plainly...she felt herself falling, too.

Red's courage seemed to finally peter out, because his cheeks flushed, and he turned away, adjusting his hat to hide his embarrassment. "...You know, I was thinking about asking you to stay here with me...as my girlfriend."

The color of Soul's face intensified by a few shades. "Red..."

"...A-Anyway," Red said, gathering the drinking glasses and heading for the door, adding, "promise me you'll think about it, okay?" The doors swished, and he left.

Soul fell into an addled daze; she'd never had someone confess to her before, and she had to admit, it was a pretty nice feeling. Remembering Silver's presence in the Center dispersed her cloud rather rapidly, however, and she shook her head slightly as she exited the post-confession haze. She still had feelings for Silver, she couldn't deny it...but was it fair to reject Red on the hope that one day, in the unforeseeable future, Silver would reciprocate? She had a kind, hard-working, drama-free man waiting in line for her..Maybe she should just give in and accept her growing attraction, and let her feelings for Red blossom after all...

Sighing, Soul turned and finished stacking everything on her tray, lastly placing the pot of stew on a potholder in the center of the tray. One thing was for certain, though: before any decision could be made about her love life's future, she had to first get through what she knew without a doubt would be the most awkward dinner of her life. Gulping, she put the remaining food items on her tray and hefted it, wobbling a bit from the balance-shift. "Okay," she said, taking a deep breath as she stood at the double doors, "here goes something."

* * *

"Oh, you're already here," Red said with a tone of surprise as he entered the main room and found Silver seated at the low table with Soul's Combusken.

"Chocobo came and got me," Silver said, leering at Red. "Hoping it'd be just the two of you?"

Red snickered as he placed one of the glasses in front of the redhead. "Now, Silver, why would I want something like that? Or more importantly," he said with a grunt as he sat down, shooting a smirk at Silver, "why should you care?"

Silver's knuckles turned white as they clenched on the table. "Look here, you, I've had just about enough of—"

"Watch out, hot, coming through," Soul said as she tottered in with the overladen tray, struggling to keep balance.

"Here, Soul, let me help you carry that," Red said, rising from the floor to aid her.

Silver tensed his jaw and then stood as well. "No, here, let me get it."

Red's eyebrows twitched. "Don't bother, I've got it," he said, speed-walking toward Soul.

"No, really, you already helped, let me," Silver said with increasing irritation, keeping pace with Red.

The two boys arrived at the very bewildered Soul and both took hold of one end of the tray. Sparks ignited from their eyes' meeting, and the two boys glowered at one another, tugging a bit at their own corner.

"Really, I said I've got it," Red growled, pulling the tray toward him.

"And _I_ said that it's no big deal for me to get it since you already helped," Silver snarled, yanking the platter in his direction.

"Well maybe I don't _mind_ being helpful."

"I think you've helped _enough_."

"Really, guys, I can carry it myself..." Soul said weakly.

"You stay out of this!" the two boys echoed.

"Honestly, Silvy, you're just acting like a child now," Red said haughtily. "Soul needs a _real man_ to help her out."

"Then I'll be sure to let her know when I see one," Silver snipped, his glare intensifying.

"If you two are done kibitzing over there, I'm going to serve dinner now," Soul said from the table; she'd grown fed up with waiting and just carried the tray over herself, and she was already handing Chocobo his bowl of Pokémon food as she unloaded the tray.

Thoroughly embarrassed, the two boys coughed and then shuffled to the table as well.

Silence followed, accented by the subtle sounds of slurping as they ate. Soul had realized it was going to be an awkward dinner, but she'd never imagined she'd be so starving for conversation in her life. After an agonizing few minutes, she couldn't stand it any longer.

"So, Red, you're going back to Pallet Town tomorrow, right?" she asked, grasping at any topic she could.

"Mm, yeah, Leaf, Green, and I usually get together at Christmas," Red said with a nod. "Nothing special; just some old rivals gathering together to celebrate the holidays...What about you, Soul? Any plans for tomorrow?"

"Nn, no, not really," Soul said, shaking her head. "I might go visit my mother, but..."

"Well, you could always come with me, you know."

Soul looked up, a bit surprised. Red's statement seemed to catch Silver off guard as well, and his gaze darted between the two, awaiting Soul's response, unable to mask the terror in his eyes.

Soul's lips tensed before responding. "N...No way, Red, I don't want to get in the way of your get-together," Soul said, shaking her head; Silver stifled his sigh of relief as best he could.

"Nonsense," Red said, waving his hand. "You already know Leaf, so I'm sure she'd be happy to see you. If anything," he added, smirking, "you'll make her more tolerable."

Soul chuckled. "Honestly, Red, you should try to get along with her better."

"Hey, I can't help it if she's a hothead," Red said with a laugh. "After that stunt on the phone, she's probably going to give me an ear full." He reached and took Soul's hand into both of his. "_Please_, Soul, you've gotta save me from her. If you come, she'll forget about being mad at me."

"Mm, I don't know..."

The table screeched on the tiled floor as it shifted slightly, and Soul turned to see Silver striding past her.

"Silve—"

"I'm done, so I'm going to bed," he said, cutting her off.

Soul glanced at Silver's mostly-untouched meal, and her eyebrows raised, troubled. "But you've hardly eaten anything..."

Silver stopped in the doorway and inhaled. "...Trust me, I've had enough."

As the redhead disappeared around the corner, the faintest hint of a smirk flickered at the corner of Red's mouth.

"...I just don't get him..." Soul said, eyebrows furrowing. "He's been acting so weird compared to how he usually does..."

"Ah, who can say what's eating him," Red said, shaking his head. "Now then, back to what we were discussing." He turned to find Soul staring at Silver's bowl, eyes glazed over in thought. "...Soul?" When he received no response, he brushed his finger against her hand. "Soul?"

"Huh, wha?" Soul blurted, startled back to reality. "O-Oh, sorry, what were you saying?"

He studied her for a moment, then, in a clear, almost desperate voice, he asked, "_Will you come with me?_"

Soul eyed her lap, unable to answer. "Red, I'll...I'll think about it." She looked up and smiled a bit. "Okay?"

"Nn, sure, no rush," Red said, visibly disheartened. "Just let me know by tomorrow, okay?"

Soul nodded. "Mm, sure."

* * *

Darkness loomed over the Center, and the clock in the main hall chimed once to signal the hour. All was quiet on the bitterly chilly night, and silent snowflakes flitted to the ground en masse beyond the window panes, casting small black dots of shadows across the patch of moonlight that filtered through and splashed across the floor. Not even the faintest sounds of snoring from the building's inhabitants was audible.

The rushing sound of water broke the serenity, and Soul emerged from the bathroom, rubbing her eyes and yawning. "I need to stop drinking so much Soda Pop before bed..." she muttered to herself. She stumbled down the hallway in her red flannel pajama bottoms and black tanktop in a half-sleep stupor, eager to immerse herself beneath the warm comforter she had left behind in her room. As she passed the entrance way to the main room, however, a shadow caught her eye, and she stopped.

Hunched over on the couch, head in hands, was a person, the wild outline of his long hair skewed and stretched across the swatch of light on the floor. Recognizing him, Soul clenched her jaw slightly, suddenly awake. Taking a deep breath, she entered the room, her bare feet making sticky, lapping noises on the tile.

The sounds of her approach reached Silver's ears with enough time to allow him to sit up before she sat beside him on the sofa. He stared at her, unable to speak, her face bathed in moonlight, staring firmly at him.

"So, Silver, I've been meaning to ask you this all evening," Soul said, stabilizing her shaking hands as best she could and keeping her voice as steady as allowable. "Why are you here?"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Why didn't you just tell me the truth?"


	33. Chapter 33: Night Daze

**Note:** Once again I bring you a late update, but hopefully it wasn't too agonizing a wait. Life's been stressful, but _Follow Me_ has always been on my mind, day in and day out. So don't think I've forgotten about it. Anyway, enjoy!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Three

_Night Daze_

To say the question was difficult to answer was an understatement. He sat quietly for a long moment, contemplating how best to answer. "...I don't know," he said finally, leaning his forehead on his laced fingers.

Soul's eyebrows furrowed. "You don't know? You don't _know?_" She scoffed and folded her arms. "Well, if your goal was to make an ass of yourself and confuse the heck out of me, then mission accomplished." When he didn't respond to her quip, not even with a body movement, she sighed. "Look, Silver—"

"I came to find you," Silver said, lifting his head to look at her. "I came because..." He sighed and hung his head again. "I came because I needed to ask you something."

Soul sighed. "Well, here I am, so...ask," she said, turning her body to give him her full attention.

Weighing his words, Silver inhaled and then turned to her. "Why did you lie to me?"

It was most certainly not the question she had anticipated, if she'd been anticipating anything at all, which she hadn't. Her confusion registered on her face even in the darkness, and she stumbled with her response. "Wh...What?"

"That day, when we had dinner in Goldenrod, you said that you just happened to run into my father in a cave," Silver said, hardly blinking. "But that was a lie, wasn't it?"

Soul's face darkened in frustration. "Silver, I already _told_ you, I _did_ meet your fath—"

"That's not the part I'm talking about," Silver said, shaking his head. "I know you met him. That much was true. But the story about how you came across him...you lied about that part." He stared intensely at her. "Why didn't you just tell me the truth?"

Mouth ajar, she swallowed to moisten it. "Ho...How did you...?"

Silver sighed and faced forward again, slouching over his interwoven fingers. "...After you left, I took a break from searching, and just wandered through Johto for a while. Without even realizing it, I ended up on Route 31, near Dark Cave." He chuckled lightly. "I'd gone there unconsciously, so..."

Soul caught his meaning and asked with baited breath. "...Did you find anything?"

Silver shook his head. "No signs of anything, at least none that I could see. That was about three weeks ago."

"I'm sorry," Soul said, reaching to touch his arm in comfort but then retracting it and rubbing her own. "I'm sure that was frustrating for you."

"Actually, not as much as you'd think," Silver said with a faint grin. "I searched Dark Cave knowing full well I probably wouldn't find anything. I guess I was just...covering my bases...Anyway, after that, I just walked for a while, not really going anywhere. By chance, I ran into Leaf in Goldenrod Department Store about a week later..."

* * *

Silver shuffled through the crowded Goldenrod, people chattering and laughing all around him. The frosty chill in the air only served to further support the numbness in his body, and he slumped his way through the throng, hands in his jacket pockets and a glazed look in his eyes. He made his way into the Department Store, where people bustled about, no doubt buying gifts for their loved ones for the approaching holiday. None of that mattered to Silver. Christmas was always empty for him, just like every other holiday he'd had growing up. As he boarded the elevator, he sighed to himself. What was he doing? What was the point in his wandering any more? He stared at his reflection in the glass as the floors slipped by during his ascension, light splashing across his sullen face with each passing level. He'd been on his own for only two weeks...yet the gaunt look of his face made it seem like it had been much longer. His stomach grumbled sourly at him. When was the last time he had a proper meal that didn't consist of primarily junk food or take-out? Soul had always made sure he ate properly...

He shook his head as the elevator lurched to a halt. Thinking about her would do him no good, so he buried the thought immediately. The elevator pinged as the doors slid open, and he exited onto the top floor and made his way to the vending machines in the corner. Unlike the rest of the store, the 6th floor was mostly vacant, save for a few people enjoying the refreshments at the tables in the vending machine area. He walked over toward them and stood in front of the machine, where he stared blankly at the buttons for a long moment. Thoughts of Soul crept into his mind against his will. Once again, he was alone in life, but instead of feeling relief in his solitude, he felt...empty, hollow, and dare he say...incomplete. The very notion ate away at him. He stood before the vending machine, hand hovering over a selection he wasn't even paying attention to, lost in his internal conflict.

"...Mm-hm, I'm looking forward to our meet-up on Christmas Eve, too," a girl chattered into her PokéGear as she approached and started inserting money into the machine beside Silver's. "Of course I didn't get you a present. Hee, why would I want to do something like that? Although...I could always just buy a bow and put it on my—"

A sharp hissing cut her off, and she turned to the Snivy on her shoulder. "Oh hush, you whiny thing, I'm buying you a Fresh Water right now," she said. The Pokémon hissed again and pointed with his stubby arm, and when she glanced in the direction of his indication, she let out a small gasp. "Oh!"

Silver turned slowly with a heavy, zombie-like expression, roused from his thoughts.

"Umm, Green, let me call you back..."

A bead of condensation slid down the side of Leaf's can of Lemonade. The two sat cozily at a table in the far section of the mostly-deserted floor, neither speaking to the other. "So, uh..." Leaf said, flicking her can a few times with her fingernail, "you, uh...you look like hell."

"I haven't been sleeping well the past few nights, that's all," Silver grumbled, which was true. He'd had difficulty getting to sleep since Soul's departure, and what sleep he did have was plagued by nightmarish replays of all his past mistakes.

"Oh, is that so..." Leaf said distantly, staring at her Lemonade. She paused for a moment in reflection and then, closing her eyes, sighed. "Look, I know it's none of my business, but—"

"If it's about me and Soul splitting up, I don't wanna talk about it," Silver said darkly as he sipped from his Soda Pop bottle. "It's like you said, it's none of your business."

"Right, right," Leaf said, nodding lightly. The corners of her mouth twitched, and she changed her tactic. "So I guess you won't be wanting to know where she's currently staying, then."

Silver's posture stiffened, but he took a swig of his beverage and feigned disinterest. "Nope."

"And you don't care to know that I spoke with her about a week and a half ago?" she continued casually.

"Not in the slightest," he lied.

"Don't even want to know what we talked about?"

"Not really."

"So you wouldn't have any interest in going to see her over in New Bark Town, would you?"

Silver hesitated, realizing he'd let her pull him into her trap. He glanced across the table at Leaf, who leaned her face on her hand and smiled in such a sweet, devious way that he turned his head in embarrassment. "No, I wouldn't."

"You wouldn't go see her?"

"No."

"Not even if she wanted to see you?"

"She doesn't want to see me."

"And you know that for a fact?"

"Look," Silver said, rising briskly from the table, "I didn't ask you to tell me where she was, and it's none of your damn business whether I go to see her or not. So just stay the hell out of it!" And with that he stormed off toward the elevator.

Leaf ran her finger along the rim of her can and grinned. "You owe me for that one, Souly," she snickered. "I just hope his stubborn streak wears off soon, for your sake...and for his." She looked after him as he boarded the elevator, his hands shoved in his jacket pockets again. "Because he really does look lost without you."

* * *

"So that's it, then," Soul said with a nod. "I figured when Leaf was upset I was no longer in New Bark Town, it was because she'd bumped into you and told you my location." She turned to him, fidgeting her hair behind her ear in her usual nervous habit. "Did you go looking for me there?"

Silver turned his head away and coughed. "Only because I needed to talk to you about something."

"But that still doesn't explain how you found out the truth about my meeting with your father..."

"I was just getting to that point," Silver said, weaving his fingers again. "After that, I stayed in Goldenrod for a while, trying to see if I could get any leads on my father. And no, I didn't find anything, before you ask," he said, preempting her query. "For the most part, you cleaned out the majority of Team Rocket during the Radio Tower Incident, but there were still a few stragglers left in the city with connections to the organization. None of them knew anything about Giovanni's whereabouts, though...not that I expected them to. Eventually I reached the conclusion that you were the only one who had any recent connection to him, so I figured I needed to ask you about the full circumstances of your meeting with him. So yesterday, I finally made the trip out to New Bark Town. But..."

"I was already gone," Soul finished.

"Right," Silver nodded. "As luck would have it...well, it's not necessarily _good_ luck, but..." He shook his head at his digression. "In any case, I ran into Gold and Crystal on my way to your house."

"They were in town?" Soul asked, surprised. "When I talked to Crystal last week, they were touring through Kanto together."

"Guess they were home for the holidays, I dunno," Silver said with a shrug. "Anyway, Gold told me that you weren't at home, and through the course of the conversation, we got on the subject of why you and I had been travelling together in the first place."

Soul's body tensed, the realization dawning on her.

"I didn't give him the specifics, just told him you were helping me look for my father...his response surprised me."

* * *

"Oh, that's right, your father's a wanted criminal, right?" Gold said in the same sort of casual tone he would have used to describe Silver's father were he a dentist or a lawyer or some such other respectable profession.

Silver's jaw slackened in spite of himself. "Y...How do _you_...?"

"_Gold!_ That's a horrible thing to say!" Crystal scolded. "You shouldn't joke like that!"

"But I'm not joking," Gold said, still in the same ill-suited, conversational manner. "Sil-Sil's dad is the ex-leader of Team Rocket."

"A...Are you serious?" Crystal said, aghast, hovering her hand near her mouth. "How did you find that out?"

"That's what I'd like to know!" Silver protested, but he was either unheard or ignored.

"Oh, it happened over the summer when Soul and I met that Celebi and went back in time during that incident that Soul told me not to tell Silver abou—" Gold's chattering screeched to a halt. Without moving his head, his eyes slowly drifted toward Silver, whose expression was a mixture of confusion, anger, and incredulity. "...Oops."

* * *

Soul covered her face with her hand and sighed dismally. "Oh, Gold..." She peeked between her fingers at Silver, who was staring sternly at her. "I was going to tell you the truth eventually, but..."

"But...?"

She sighed. "I was worried you'd think the story was too..._outlandish_ if I told you the whole truth. I worried you would have thought I made the whole thing up."

Silver closed his eyes and chuckled a bit with the first genuine smile he'd had in weeks. "Soul, after everything I've been through with you, I'd believe just about anything. Weird stuff follows you around everywhere you go."

Soul paused and then smiled a little as well. "You say that like it's a good thing." The two chuckled a bit, and then Soul looked at her lap. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I meant to, but..."

"Don't beat yourself up about it too much," Silver said, shaking his head. "I got over my anger yesterday. But...there is one thing."

"Nn?"

"That day we had dinner in Goldenrod, you said you'd seen him about three months prior, right?"

"Right," Soul said, nodding.

"So that was...around the end of July, then?"

"Yeah, I think so. It was shortly after our double-battle against Lance and Clair."

"But then you and Gold travelled back in time from that point, right? Because of the Celebi?"

"Well, yes..."

"And you wound up in the cave with my father during all that, correct?"

"Yes, Silver, but I don't see what you're getting a—"

"Gold said there was a radio playing in the cave," Silver said, his gaze more serious than ever. "Do you remember what was playing on it?"

"Mmm..." Soul mumbled, thinking. "It was a man talking...It sounded like..."

"Archer's broadcast during the Radio Tower Incident?"

Soul turned to him, the realization visible on her face. "H...How did I not notice that before?"

"The Celebi took you to where my father was at the time Team Rocket was wreaking havoc in Goldenrod, last December," Silver said, leaning forward. "That means while you were battling Team Rocket in Goldenrod, you were also battling against my father in another part of the world. Essentially, you were in two places at once."

Soul leaned back against the couch, shocked. "It...It never even occurred to me to think of it that way." She shook her head and held her forehead. "Oy vey, time travelling sure makes a mess of things."

Silver chuckled. "No kidding. But...that means that instead of five months, it's been a whole year since you saw him." Silver sunk darkly into his laced fingers. "Our whole trip was doomed from the start."

"Well, even with three months, it was a long-shot...but yeah, it's even worse with that in view," Soul agreed, slumping her shoulders.

They sat for a moment in grim silence, the clock on the wall droning rhythmically in the background, filling the void. So that was it then. Soul imagined Silver would give up his hunt for his father. After all, any sane person would realize the futility of the venture. It was completely foolish to consider continuing. She hung her head, eyelids heavy.

"Even still..." Silver said suddenly, rousing Soul from her thoughts. He paused, and then repeated even quieter, "_Even still..._" He drummed his fingers together for a moment, pondering. "Even still, I'd like to take a look at the place you saw him. You said it was a cave, but you never told me where it was." He looked up at her. "That's why I came looking for you in the first place. Gold said he didn't know where it was, so..."

Soul scrunched her features in thought. "I don't..." Her eyebrows twitched as the epiphany hit her. "The radio...! When...When I was travelling to the Elite Four, I had to pass through Tohjo Falls on my way to Kanto," she explained, excitement growing in her voice. "While I was passing through, I came across a small cave, and inside it was a broken radio! The same radio Giovanni was listening to! It didn't mean anything to me at the time because I hadn't faced him yet, but now...!"

"Gold said he remembered hearing running water in the distance during your battle," Silver said, joining her enthusiasm. "That's got to be it!"

The two of them leapt to their feet and made to hug each other, but then realization registered on both of their faces simultaneously, and they halted and turned in opposite directions, playing it off as coincidence.

"So..." Silver said, massaging the back of his neck.

"Right..." Soul mumbled, rubbing her arm.

Silver coughed and turned. "I guess I'll be heading for Tohjo Falls in the morning." He paused, then added, "Thank-you, Soul."

She turned to him and shook her head, smiling. "Mm, no problem." She glanced at the clock and warmed her shoulders. "Well, it's late, and I'm cold, so I'm heading back to bed. You coming, too?"

"Mm...I'll be along. You go ahead."

"All right," she said, nodding. "Good night, Silver."

"Yeah...good night." Silver watched as she swiveled on her heel and headed toward the hallway. Clenching his jaw slightly, he drew in a breath. "You could come with me, you know. If...If you wanted to, that is." He stared at the floor and scratched the back of his head. "I wouldn't mind having you along for just this one last trip."

Soul hesitated at the threshold, holding onto the frame as she thought in silence. After a long, agonizing moment, she softly replied, "...I"ll think about it." She then retreated into the hallway, leaving him alone once more in the Center lobby.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Well, Soul...take care of yourself."


	34. Chapter 34: Heart Stamp

**Note:** Sorry for the unintended hiatus, and sorry this chapter isn't longer. A lot has happened and have just been busy with life. For now, enjoy.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Four

_Heart Stamp_

"Have a Merry Christmas!" Soul said with a smile, waving at the nurse behind the desk as she, Chocobo, and the two boys headed for the exit.

The nurse returned the gesture and beamed. "Nn, come back and visit me some time soon, Soul! I'll miss your cooking more than you can imagine!"

"You won't be the only one," Red said with a grin, waving over his shoulder. "See you in two days."

Silver cast his eyes gloomily at the ground and tightened the grip on the strap of his bag. He waited as Red gestured Soul and her Pokemon out the door first then exited behind her into the bright light of the morning, Red and his Pikachu close behind. The three Trainers walked in single file for a short distance without saying a word before Red finally stopped and cleared his throat.

"So, this is where we need to decide what happens next," he said, gripping the brim of his hat as if readying himself for battle. Red turned to Soul, who kept her back to him. "Soul...did you decide if you were going to come with me to Pallet Town?"

Soul gripped the strap of her bag for a long pause, heart drumming in her ears. She'd made her decision before going to sleep the night prior, but the thought of saying it out loud made her hesitate. Tensing, she turned to face the two boys, both eagerly awaiting her response. "I did." She closed her eyes and turned to Red. "Red...I'm sorry, but there's somewhere I have to take Silver that's really important, so I can't come with you. Not this time, at least."

Red's entire posture sunk just slightly, and he ruffled the brown hair on the back of his neck. "Nah, it's cool. It wasn't a big deal or anything. Just a small party."

She closed the gap between them and took his hand. "I really had a good time training here with you," she said sincerely, staring into his eyes. "We had a lot of fun, and I'd really like for that fun to continue, but..." She glanced at Silver, who'd turned away to conceal his relief at his victory, then she turned back to Red. "Where I need to go with Silver is very important, so important that I'd feel terrible if I didn't take him there myself." She looked up at him, eyes begging. "Do you understand?"

Red stared back into her brown eyes, wishing his own could persuade her to change her mind. Sighing, he nodded. "It's fine, really." He gave her hand a squeeze. "There's always next time, right?"

Soul smiled weakly. "Nn, sure. I'd like that."

The two held hands for longer than what would normally be considered appropriate between friends and then pulled away slowly. They exchanged the same sad smile and then broke eye contact.

"Right then," Red said with a nod, adjusting his cap. He turned to Silver. "Silvy, you be sure to tell ol' Giovanni I said hello."

Silver's shoulders jerked, and he turned with an expression of such bewilderment that Red couldn't help but let out a loud chuckle.

"Your face, it looks just like his," Red said, gesturing at his own. He smiled a little deviously and added, "And I don't much care if you take that as a compliment or not."

"You...You knew the whole time?" Silver asked, still in shock.

"Mm...Not the _whole_ time," Red said, shaking his head. "When I first saw you, I thought you looked familiar, but it wasn't until I mulled it over that I finally remembered that a long time ago, one of the Rockets mentioned Giovanni had a red-headed kid. Once I put that and your similar looks together, I pretty much assumed you were the son they mentioned. Your reaction just now confirmed my suspicions, though." Red shoved his hands in his jacket pockets and grinned at Silver. "So, tell me, Silvy, when was the last time you saw your dear old dad?"

Silver cast his eyes at the ground. "Not since the day you defeated him. He left town and never came back."

Red's eyebrows furrowed. "He left you behind, just like that?"

Silver's knuckles clenched. "Yeah."

Red shook his head in dismay. "Look, man, I'm sorry...it...it wasn't persona—"

"I know it's not your fault," Silver said, shaking his head. He fixed Red with a stern glare. "I know what he was doing was wrong, so I don't need your sympathy."

The two stared at one another for a long moment, and then Red shut his eyes with a light chuckle. "Right then," he said, shoving his hands in his jacket pockets. He turned to Soul. "Pikachu and I will miss you around here, Soul. Pika especially; I think he's grown pretty fond of you." Pikachu chattered affirmatively from Red's shoulder, and he scratched the Pokémon behind the ears to comfort him.

Soul reached out and patted the monster as well. "Nn, I'll miss you, too," her eyes flashed at Red as she added, "both of you."

Red caught her glance just long enough to see her eyes dart away, and he rubbed the back of his neck to hide his embarrassment. "Well, Soul...take care of yourself."

"Nn. You too," she said.

As he turned to leave, Red hesitated, adding, "Silvy, if you see your old man, tell him I'd love to have a rematch someday."

Silver stared at him for a moment and then shrugged slightly. "Nn, whatever."

Red nodded a bit. "Oh, and Silver?"

"What?" he asked, a groan of annoyance in his voice.

Red's face darkened instantly. "You do anything that makes her cry, even so much as one single tear, I'm coming after you."

Silver blinked, surprised by the sudden threat and the intensity of Red's glower. "Wh...Wha...?"

With a final wink at Soul, who mustered a small, weak smile in response, Red turned and headed down Route 28 toward Viridian. He took long strides in silence, his hands in his pockets, eyes hidden by the brim of his hat on his ducked head. When he was sure he'd put enough distance between them to be out of eyesight, he stopped and stood quietly in the snowy grass, fresh white dollops drifting down to add to the collection. After staring at his feet for a while, a much quieter, humbler Red muttered, "...Why is it when it comes to her, I always lose? First in battle, and now..." He hesitated, and his Pikachu nuzzled his rosy cheek against his master's. Red turned to the Pokémon and patted his head with affection. "...Come on, Pikachu. Green and Leaf are waiting for us." Hands in his pockets once more, he walked alone down the snow-drenched path, his solitary footsteps crunching beneath his sneakers.

* * *

Soul and Silver stood side by side, watching Red's departure, and then, by coincidence, they turned simultaneously toward each other. Both whipped their heads in the opposite direction, feeding the awkward silence even more.

Chocobo looked between the two humans, confused and upset by their behavior. They used to be such good friends; what happened? The Pokémon knew his master had missed the red-headed human, and she'd been so sad after they'd left him. Why was she being so quiet now that she was with him again? Chocobo supposed it was just something humans did, and he would never understand. At the very least, he could show her his support.

Soul felt the hard talons of her accompanying Pokémon brush her hand, and she turned to Chocobo, who chirruped hopefully at her. She smiled a little and ruffled his head feathers, then she turned to Silver and took a deep breath. "...All right, Silver, we should get going."

Silver turned and nodded quietly. "Nn, right. To Tohjo Falls, then?"

Soul tucked her bangs behind her ears with a gloved hand and bit her lip. "Actually...since it's Christmas Eve, I was hoping...or rather, I was going to ask you...if we could go visit my mom first. Just for today, and then we can head out tomorrow..." She fidgeted. "Unless, of course, you don't _want_ to, in which case we can just head to Tohjo now—"

"That's fine."

Soul turned to Silver, surprised. "Wh...What?"

"I said that's fine," Silver repeated. "We can even stay all day tomorrow and head out on the twenty-sixth, if you'd like."

Soul blinked a little, not used to Silver being so accommodating. "O...Oh, okay, if you don't mind..."

"Sure," Silver said with a shrug.

"I mean...I know looking for your dad is important, and I don't want you to think I'm trivializing it—"

"_Soul_," Silver said more firmly, hints of agitation in his voice. "I said it's fine. Stop making such a big deal about it."

"O...kay..." Soul said uncertainly, eyeing Silver as he dug in his jacket pocket. Silver being considerate was...strange.

"Come on; if we want to get to New Bark Town before noon, we'd better go now," Silver said, retrieving a Pokéball from his pocket and releasing his Crobat.

"O-Oh, right!" Soul said, flustering for Chuu's ball in her coat.

As they flew southwest toward New Bark Town, Soul found herself staring at the red-head before her, riding on his Crobat. Something was different about him. He'd been acting strangely ever since his arrival at Mt. Silver. He'd been awkward, quiet, and had even tried to be helpful. The harsh, cold image of Silver she'd had in her head for as long as she'd known him started to melt, making her heart flutter.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"What...What the hell just happened?"


	35. Chapter 35: Roost

__**Note:** ...Yeah, so I thought I uploaded this chapter to Fanfiction when I uploaded it to DeviantArt. Apparently not. Oops. My bad. Upside: Fanfiction gets two chapters at once. So, uh...take solace in that. Along with my apologies.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Five

_Roost_

It was always windy in New Bark Town, and December 24th was no exception. The bitter breezes that rushed in from the waters on Route 27 were especially biting, and as the two trainers landed in the peaceful hamlet on the shores near the river that connected Johto and Kanto, Soul shivered as the frosty gale stung her already-frozen cheeks. She turned to Silver, who was returning his Crobat to his Pokéball, and she dug in her bag to do the same with Chuu. Absentmindedly, she stared out over the river, the surface speckled intermittently with small chunks of ice. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply as another gust washed over her body. "Home," she whispered, the faintest hint of a smile on her lips.

Silver allowed her the moment to drink in the surroundings. He watched her in silence as she released Chocobo and talked excitedly to him about being home again. He saw her smile, and his frostbitten cheeks thawed. Shoving his hands in his pockets and coughing, he turned away, adding, "Come on, it's freezing out here."

Soul turned her head and nodded awkwardly. "Nn, sorry," she said, motioning for Chocobo to follow them up the beach toward the small slope that led uphill to the main part of town. "My house is right up there," she added, pointing to the house nearest the water's edge. "I bet Mom will be happy to see us."

* * *

"Mom?" Soul said as the two entered the house, the warmth of the home devouring their wind-battered bodies. The house had changed only slightly in the month she'd been away; the kitchen on the left was immaculate as always, the dining room across from the entrance had a nice, festive centerpiece on the table, and in the living room on the right stood a handsome Christmas tree in the corner, the couch and loveseat centered around the coffee table. Family portraits hung in staggered arrangements throughout the home, and the faint smell of smoke from the fireplace in the living room pervaded the whole house. Soul took another step inside as Silver and Chocobo remained at the threshold. "Mom? Pyro? Are you home?"

There was a sudden, loud thunk on the ceiling above them, then the sound of thundering footsteps that cascaded down the stairs until their source, a hulking Typhlosion, burst into the room from the stairwell and charged toward Soul, toppling her to the ground.

Muffled, riotous laughter greeted the eager Pokémon. "Ahh, Pyro, it's good to see you too, but let me up!" Soul giggled, patting the Pokémon's back in a half-hug, half-desperate gesture. Pyro obliged, and Soul sat up, beaming. "Have you been taking good care of Mom, Pyro?"

The Typhlosion nodded, grinning proudly. His gaze shifted to the doorway, where he spotted Silver, and his entire demeanor sank. Tensing, the Pokémon took a fighting stance and growled.

Silver's eyebrows furrowed. "What's his problem?"

"Oh, stop it, Pyro," Soul scolded him. "Silver's here as a frie...a-as a guest," she fumbled.

Pyro snorted but obeyed his master, leering threateningly at Silver.

"So it was you, Soul," a voice, accompanied by creaking footsteps down the stairs, said. Soul's mother, a petite brunette with brown eyes and a kind, middle-aged face, smiled at her daughter. "You hadn't called, but I was hoping you'd come home for Christmas, anyway."

"Mm, yeah," Soul said, rubbing her arm awkwardly, "sorry to drop in unannounced." She noticed the curious glance from her mother, followed her gaze to Silver, and faltered. "Oh, umm, sorry. This is my...friend, Silver. He'll be staying with us for Christmas, if that's okay."

"Oh, it's no problem at all!" Soul's mother said with a warm smile. "It's nice to meet you, Silver."

Silver nodded clumsily. "Nn, same," he said in an effort to be polite.

"Well now!" her mother said, clapping her hands together. "You two must be freezing; care for a cup of tea?"

"Nn, that'd be great," Soul said, removing her coat and hanging it on the rack near the door.

She and Silver made their way to the living room while Soul's mother busied herself in the kitchen. Soul and Chocobo made themselves comfortable on the couch against the rear wall, and Silver sat down on the loveseat across from her. Pyro lumbered by and purposely shoved against Silver's legs with a snarl before settling in front of the fireplace mantle.

Silver frowned. "Seriously, what's the deal with your Typhlosion?" he grumbled.

"Oh, he doesn't like you," Soul said casually as she set her bag down on the floor.

Silver raised an indignant eyebrow. "Wait, what? What'd I do?"

Soul shot him a glare that seemed to say, "Are you joking?" and his face drained of color a bit. Soul cleared her throat. "Well, among many, many, _many_," she shot him a calculated glare with the emphasis, "things you have done to me, you were also my rival. I guess some grudges don't go away so easily."

"Right..." Silver said, glancing at Pyro, who growled in response.

"Lucky thing I had already set a pot on the stove going before heading upstairs," Soul's mother said cheerily as she joined them with a tray filled with a tea set and some cookies.

Soul puffed her cheeks scoldingly. "Honestly! Mom, you should be more careful. What if there'd been a fire?"

"Oh, don't be silly, Soul," her mother said, not losing a bit of sprightliness. "I know you're a worrier, but the house isn't going to burn down just from me putting on a pot of tea."

"I was more worried about you forgetting about it," Soul mumbled, glancing away. "You're the worst about being absentminded..."

"Hmm? What was that, dear?" her mother asked as she poured a cup and handed it to Silver.

"N-Nothing, Mom, nothing," Soul said with a weak smile, accepting her own cup and saucer from her mother.

"Well, I guess it's a lucky thing I went ahead and went Christmas shopping last week," her mother said with a smile before taking a sip of her drink. "...Ahhh, that really does warm you from the inside, doesn't it?" She replaced the saucer on the table. "Anyway, as I was saying, I went out and did a bit of Christmas shopping for you last week; I got that game you said you wanted...Something-Fantasy? Although I can't imagine why you'd want it if you won't have any time to play it."

"I'll get to play it eventually, don't worry," Soul assured her, offering one of the cookies to Chocobo before helping herself to one as well.

Soul's mother turned to Silver, and her expression sunk sadly. "I'm afraid I didn't expect having any guests, so I won't have anything for you, Silver."

Silver, distracted by a glaring contest with Pyro, glanced up at the mention of his name, and then he shook his head. "Nn, don't worry about it; I'm not used to getting presents on Christmas."

Her mother's eyebrows furrowed a bit. "What on earth do you mean?"

Silver looked at the bottom of his cup with a bored expression and replied casually, "Well, Christmas Eve is my birthday, so we usually just combined the two and opened my gif—"

A loud clink of china halted him, and he glanced up to find both Soul and her mother staring at him with mortified expressions. He blinked, surprised. "...What?"

"To...Today is your birthday?" Soul gasped, horrified.

Silver's cheeks pinkened a bit, startled by their sudden shift in demeanor. "Well...yeah, technically. But I haven't really celebrated my birthday in years, so there's no need to make a big fuss."

Both mother and daughter stared at Silver in the most awkward five seconds of his life. They then turned to each other and spoke in a flurry of back-to-back responses.

"If I hurry, I might be able to make it to the stores before they close."

"Oh, good, Soul, that's an excellent idea. Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure I have enough ingredients here to make a cake, but I'll need you to pick up some candles."

"Nn, sure, I can do that," she said with a nod. She turned quickly to Silver. "You're turning...fifteen today, right?"

"Well, yeah, but seriously, you really don't have to—"

"Come on, Chocobo, we have to hurry before it's too late!" she said, leaping off the couch and grabbing her bag in one swift motion. Before Silver could stop her, she was at the door, throwing on her coat and scarf, adding, "I'll be back in a couple of hours!" over her shoulder before slamming the door behind herself and Chocobo.

Silver turned to where Soul's mother had been to discover she'd already vanished into the kitchen, signified by the scuffles he heard of shifting bowls and spoons. He sat dumbfounded for a long moment, and then he turned to Pyro. "What...What the hell just happened?" The fire Pokémon grumbled in reply.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Soul trusted you enough to tell you half of the story, so I think I'll honor that trust and give you the other half."


	36. Chapter 36: Facade

**Note:** Like I said, two chapters at once. Enjoy!_  
_

_Special thanks to deviant art users **Kamari-Akuma** and **jhealy14** for inspiring the names of Soul's mother and father (respectively)!_

**Warning: This chapter contains some moderate language and moderate depictions of violence.**

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Six

_Facade_

"I'm serious, you don't have to do anything for my birthday."

"Oh, don't be silly! Making a cake is no problem at all!" Soul's mother replied, waving dismissively at Silver as she retrieved a mixing bowl from one of the upper cabinets.

He took a step further into the kitchen threshold. "But Mrs...uh, ma'am...umm..."

"Heart."

"Hm?"

"My name," she said. "My name is Heart. And it's just Ms.; I'm not married any more."

"Right," Silver said with a nod. "Soul told me about how you were divorced."

Heart paused as she placed the bowl lightly on the counter. "...Is that what she told you?" she asked in a quiet voice.

Silver's eyebrows furrowed, troubled by her sudden demeanor change. "Yeah...was that wrong?"

Heart hesitated in thought a second longer and then went to the fridge.

"Ms. Heart?" Silver asked, stepping properly into the kitchen.

"No," she said from behind the refrigerator door, "that was the truth." She retrieved the milk and eggs and closed the door, pondering. "That's what surprises me."

"Huh?"

Heart returned with her ingredients and placed them on the countertop with a sigh. "What I mean is, she's never told anyone that I'm simply, 'divorced.' Usually she tells people her father is deceased. She even said that to Gold, and I always thought they were close..." She turned to Silver. "The point is, you should consider yourself lucky, because it seems Soul trusts you very much if she told you the truth."

Silver stared at the counter, unsure of how to respond.

"Oh, darn it," Heart said suddenly. "I forgot the oil." She turned to Silver. "I hate to ask, but it's in a cabinet up high, and you're taller than I am..."

"Sure," Silver said with a nod. "Where is it?"

"The cabinet above the stove; it should be right in front," she said, pointing toward the back of the kitchen.

Silver crossed the room as she indicated and found the cupboard easily. "If you don't mind me asking," he said as he stood on his toes to reach the bottle, "why would Soul lie about something like that? I mean," he retrieved the bottle and closed the cabinet before continuing, "it's not like divorce is anything scandalous nowadays."

Heart paused as he returned with the cooking oil, and she took the bottle from him in silence. After a moment more's hesitation, she looked up at him and smiled. "Soul trusted you enough to tell you half of the story, so I think I'll honor that trust and give you the other half.

"Soul's father, Grey, was a little harsh at times, but he had his good points, as well," she began. "When we first met, he was a bit of a loner and very gruff. He wasn't exactly kind at first, but as we continued to bump into each other, we, 'grew,' on one another until a romance sparked. Grey had a temper, like most people, but I guess back then, that wasn't very important to me. I was in love, and that was all that mattered. In hindsight, I suppose I felt that because he seemed so lonely, I wanted to be the one to fill that void in his heart. Anyway, as time passed, we grew closer, and we decided to get married. Two years later, Soul was born.

"For a time, everything was happy. Grey got a good job in Rustboro City, Soul grew bigger and stronger each day, and I kept busy as the housewife I'd always wanted to be. Grey's job paid well, so we lived comfortably. That isn't to say we lived perfectly; Grey's job was also very stressful, so every so often, we'd clash due to his stress, but it was nothing out of the ordinary for a young couple."

Heart looked down at the cake batter she was mixing in her metal bowl, a melancholy expression on her face. "The first sign of what was to come happened when Soul was about four years old."

* * *

As if in slow motion, firm, masculine hand struck smooth, feminine cheek, an impulse, an accident. The sound echoed in her mind as she stood there, startled and bewildered. She turned to him, eyes glazed and glossy.

He returned her gaze with a look of shock, glancing between his wife and his own uplifted hand. "Heart..." he said, voice cracking, all pretense of anger from their previous debate gone. "Heart, babe...I...I didn't mean...I didn't mean to—"

"It's fine, Grey," she said swiftly, shaking her head. "I...I can tell it was an accident."

"Babe...Babe, I'm so, so sorr—"

"Mommy?"

The two adults turned to the small child who stood in the hallway, rubbing her eyes groggily due to the late hour.

"Mommy, why are you and Daddy yelling?"

"It's nothing, sweetie," Heart said as she crossed the room to comfort her child. "Mommy and Daddy were just talking."

"You were talking really loud, though..."

"I know, and we're sorry, baby," Heart said soothingly, cupping Soul's cheek with her hand. "We promise we'll stop, so go back to bed, please."

Nodding and yawning, the little girl retreated down the hallway.

"We should all get some rest," Heart added quietly as she stood. "It's late."

Grey took his wife's hand. "Heart, listen to me." He waited until she turned. "I swear, I will _never_ hit you again." He held her cheek as a tear glided across it. "_I promise_."

* * *

Heart put the two circular cake pans in the oven and sighed as she set the timer. "Unfortunately," she said as she turned and joined Silver at the table in the dining room, "that ended up being a lie." She gazed at the smooth wood surface with a somber look in her eyes. "He did hit me again, and again he said it was an accident. It started out slowly, as most things do, but over the course of the following four years, it escalated to the point where he not only stopped apologizing for hitting me, he stopped holding back simply because Soul was around, too."

"...If things were so bad, why didn't you just leave?" Silver asked, still taking in the whole story.

Heart smiled sweetly at him, eyes slightly glassy. "I suppose there were a number of reasons. Part of it was I wasn't financially independent, at all, honestly. I knew that if I left, I'd have to support not only myself, but Soul as well. I never went to college, and I wasn't much of a Pokemon trainer, so I had no skill set I could fall back on once I left, or so I thought. To be honest, I made a lot of excuses to myself as to why I couldn't leave. Money, not wanting to uproot Soul, fear that Grey would follow us...I concocted several reasons. I learned later in counseling that this was a form of psychological damage. More than hurting my body or my heart, Grey had crushed my spirit. He made me feel like I was useless and worse, that I deserved what was happening, like I had failed in our marriage."

Heart laced her fingers near her mouth in contemplative silence before lowering them to continue. "I'll never forget the night it all changed. It was late-April and rainy, close to Soul's eighth birthday. In the weeks leading up to this event, Grey's temper had been flaring badly; the company he worked for was falling on hard times, and everyone involved was stressed and at risk of losing their jobs. As you can imagine, this lead to more and more incidents, to the point they happened almost daily...It was late that night, and Soul had already gone to bed, or so I thought."

* * *

Rain bore down heavily in thick curtains on the small house, an unusually fierce Spring rain. However, the intense gale paled in comparison to the storm brewing inside the home.

A vase shattered against the wall as the screaming man threw it at the woman who cowered in the corner, her arms hugging her head as a shield. He swore and crossed to her, grabbing her hair with his left arm and pulling her face to meet his as he knelt beside her.

"You look at me when I'm fucking talking to you, bitch!" Grey roared, gripping her hair tightly in his fist as the woman winced and whimpered. Her tear-filled eyes did not meet his, so in disgust, he slapped her, his hand stinging from the force of the blow. "I said _look at me!_" Slowly, her eyes journeyed to meet his, her bruised and bleeding face reflected in the flash of a streak of lightning outside the window. "See, now was that so difficult?" he mocked her as thunder rumbled in the distance.

"G...Grey..." she sobbed, hot tears cascading down her swollen cheeks. "P-Please...stop—"

"I'll stop when I fucking please!" Grey spat, smacking her again in the face. "You know damn well you don't tell me what to do, you stupid whore! Honestly, you're the biggest fucking waste of space I've ever seen!"

Heart sputtered and sobbed, blood dribbling from her lip. She closed her eyes, and more tears splashed out of the corners.

"_I told you to look at me, you stupid bitch!_" he bellowed, and he began beating her repeatedly, trying to break through her returned arm shield and ignoring her shrill cries of protest. His arms thrashed at her again and again, a hunger-lust to reach the more sensitive areas of her face in his eyes.

CRASH!

He felt the object collide sharply with the back of his head and heard the glass as it clattered on the floor. An intense warmth pooled in the back of his head, and he felt something dribble on the back of his neck before everything grew dark, and he fell forward, unconscious.

Heart looked up, shocked. The broken lamp still held aloft, seven-year-old Soul turned to her mother, panic-stricken and on the verge of tears.

* * *

"Of course Soul had heard us," Heart said, wringing her palms. "She'd gotten up and called the police before coming to my rescue. If she hadn't, well..." She straightened in her chair. "After that, Grey was arrested, and Soul and I went to live in a battered women's shelter, where I received hospital treatment. Grey actually broke my arm in the scuffle...but it could have been much worse..." She sighed slightly. "The shelter helped us get on our feet; they helped me get a job, gave us group and individual therapy, and most important of all, helped me file my divorce from Grey.

"Grey of course went for an insanity plea, which I don't doubt that he probably was, but the court overruled him and sentenced him to thirty years in prison for assault and attempted manslaughter. After several months of working and getting my affairs in order, I decided it was time for a fresh start, so I moved us here to Johto in January of the following year. That'll be four years ago next month." Heart brightened a little, more forced than natural. "With the money from the divorce, I was able to buy us this house, and I have a steady day job here in New Bark Town. It pays well enough, but Soul, she..." She smiled fondly. "She insisted that a portion of all her earnings as a trainer should come back here to me. I don't typically use it unless I'm buying things for her, though, so I've been depositing it in a savings account for her...Soul's always fussing about me, probably because she feels guilty about being too young to help me against Grey. She even sent me Pyro here to protect me after I had a run-in with a burglar. I don't know if you've noticed," Heart said with a little grin, "but Soul can be very meticulous about things."

"Yeah," Silver said with a snort, recalling Soul's constant need for super-organization, "I've definitely noticed."

Heart giggled. "She sadly owes that to me; I'm horrible with organizing. After we left Grey, Soul seemed to mature rapidly, and she learned how to cook and clean so she could take care of me, I suppose." Heart dabbed at her eyes with a napkin. "Even though things ended badly with Grey, I'm still grateful to him, because without him, I wouldn't have Soul. She's always been my rock through everything that's happened.

"Recently..." She paused for thought. "Recently, Grey has been trying to contact Soul via letter, I suppose to try to reconcile with her. He says he's been getting counseling and is filled with regret." She closed her eyes, thinking. "I know that I'll probably never forgive Grey, and I don't expect Soul to, either, but...she only has one father, and I'd at least rather her express to him how she feels than pretend he doesn't exist."

There was a loud bell chime from the adjacent room, and Heart rose. "Ah, cake's done!" she said cheerily; it was an eerie, stark contrast to her previous demeanor. She bustled around the corner to tend to the finished pastries, leaving Silver alone with his thoughts.

His mind whirred, processing all the information he'd been given. He'd never imagined Soul had come from a broken home just like him. Why, then, had she been so insistent upon him making peace with Giovanni, when she herself wouldn't do the same with her own father? But then again, he reasoned, Giovanni was never physically or even really emotionally abusive. _No_, he mused, _you actually have to be around for stuff like that. _Silver wondered, perhaps, if Soul wanted to vicariously experience that sort of reconciliation, that maybe she wanted him to do what she could not. Maybe she wanted better for him. Maybe that was the extent of how much she cared for him. A sharp pang of affection for the brunette washed over him, and he squirmed in his chair as he tried to quash it, his face matching his hair. _That's how things __**used**__ to be_, he scolded, _before **you** screwed things up_. He settled into his typical self-loathing and brooding as Heart returned to the dining room.

"I'm sorry to bother you with our family's troubles," Heart said with a sigh. "I'm sure you weren't looking for so much personal information."

"No, it's fine," Silver said as politely as he could (he wasn't accustomed to being so cordial with anyone, least of all adults), shaking his head. "I didn't exactly have a great childhood, either, so I can understand." When she furrowed her eyebrows at him, he sighed, slightly weary. "Without going into extreme detail, let's just say I've been on my own for most of my life," he explained.

Her hand cupped his; it was warm and tender, and he flushed slightly as he met her comforting, motherly gaze. She smiled at him, and the corners of his mouth twitched into the faintest hint of the same expression in return.

"If you'd rather not tell Soul I told you all of this, I'll understand," Heart said. "I only felt impressed to tell you because I get the feeling that Soul trusts you, based on how much she's mentioned you in the past."

"She's mentioned me before?" he blurted unintentionally in hopeful, surprised tones.

"A few times, yes," she said with a nod. "With increasing frequency in the past year," she added with a smile.

Silver's ears pinkened.

"That's why I shared our story," she said, lacing her fingers in a businesslike manner. "I figured with how regularly she mentions you, you must hold some significant place in her life. And as someone who now understands her background, it's my hope that you'll always treat Soul with the respect she deserves."

She shot him a weighted stare, and for a moment, Silver wondered if Soul had spoken with her mother about his most _recent_ interactions with the brunette trainer. Gulping, he nodded. "O-Of course," he said.

Her sudden iciness melted into a smile; it reminded him of Soul, as it was probably the same smile inherited. "You seem like a nice boy, Silver, so I'll rest easy knowing you're with her."

_Yeah, that's me,_ he thought bitterly. _Nice guy of the year, here._

"Oh!" she said, leaping to her feet, startling Silver. "Here I am gabbing when there's frosting to be made!" She hurried to the kitchen. "Feel free to make yourself comfortable on the sofa, Silver," she added from the adjacent room.

Silver glanced over his shoulder at the living room behind him, where Pyro still lay snoozing on the hearth. As if he were suddenly a Psychic type, the Typhlosion lifted his head and met eyes with the red-headed trainer. The Pokémon leered and growled at him, baring his fangs threateningly.

"...You know what, I think I'll just help you in the kitchen instead..."

* * *

Twilight fell on the little hamlet of New Bark Town, fresh snow falling and clumping in new heaps on the ground. Silver glanced out the window and sighed; it was getting dark, and there was still no sign of Soul. She'd been gone for hours, and he was certain most stores had closed by this time. Why did she have to be so irritating?

"Soul's a little late," Heart said as she laid out place settings for three. "Dinner will be ready soon...Perhaps I'll call her PokéGear..." She disappeared up the stairs in search of the house phone.

Silver sighed again. He'd spent the past several hours helping Soul's mother with various things around the house, ranging from decorating the house even more festively with ribbons and other assortments of holiday novelties to assisting her with dinner preparation and helping frost his cake. Admittedly, he'd only complied at first to avoid the wrath of Soul's Typhlosion, but the more he interacted with her, the more he found he rather liked Soul's mother. He'd been wondering how Soul could turn out so chipper with such a dark past, but conversation after conversation with her mother proved why: Heart's cheerfulness was infectious, and the two were incredibly similar as a result. Heart did most of the talking, with only an occasional remark from Silver, but he found that on the whole, he enjoyed her chatter and her bright temperament. He secretly admitted that perhaps it was this sort of interaction he'd been missing from Soul over the past few weeks.

A knock at the door roused him from his musing, and, since Heart was still upstairs, Silver crossed the short distance and answered it.

With a loud crack, confetti and small, squiggly streamers shot at his face, accompanied by small puffs of colored smoke. Silver, so shocked that he wasn't sure if he should be angry or confused, gaped at the trio on the other side of the threshold.

"Woo-hoo! Lucky us, he answered the door instead of your mom, Soul!"

"Nn, nn, lucky us is right, Crys. How's it going, Sil-Sil?"

Standing at the forefront with expended party poppers in their hands, both beaming toothily at Silver, were Crystal and Gold. Behind them, bogged down with several shopping bags, stood Chocobo and Soul.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Ooo, ooo, Sil-Sil, now I can send you dirty text messages!"


	37. Chapter 37: Reversal

**Note:** After much trial and tribulation, here it is, finally. Enjoy.

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Seven

_Reversal_

"Oh?" Heart said as she came down the stairs, cordless phone in hand. "Well, hello, and welcome back!" she said cheerfully to the new arrivals as they stood in the doorway, removing their coats and other winter things. "I take it you two are here for the party?"

"You betcha!" Gold said, clapping an arm around Silver's shoulders. "We wouldn't miss the birthday of our dear friend Sil-Sil for the world!"

"You have five seconds to let go of me before I rip off your arm and beat you to death with it," Silver grumbled in a low voice, peripherally glaring daggers at Gold.

"Oh, come on, now, Sil-Sil," Gold chuckled, squeezing Silver, "you shouldn't be so grumpy on your birth—"

"_Five_," Silver counted, closing his eyes, his eyebrows furrowed to maximum capacity. "_Four_..."

"Letting go," Gold said immediately, arms in the air as if he were under arrest.

"Oh, good, Soul, did you manage to find some presents while you were out?" Heart said, completely ignoring the boys' exchange as she crossed to help Soul with the shopping bags.

"Nn, just a few things," Soul nodded, handing her mother one of the bags. "One of them, I was very lucky and managed to grab the last one in stock, although I think I may have elbowed a lady in the face to get it..."

"_Niiice_, Soul, you get into a retail knockout? I can just picture you going all Tyranitar on some unsuspecting grandma over a DVD player," Gold said, holding his arms up in a menacing imitation.

"Nothing that serious, Gold," Soul said with a meek grin. "If I did hurt someone, it was on accident."

"Oh, come on now, Soul, don't be so modest," Gold teased, nudging her in the ribs. "Admit it, you sucker-punched an old lady over a Christmas gift, didn't you?"

"I did _noooot_," Soul insisted with a laugh, shoving Gold playfully.

Crystal observed their chummy interaction, a heavy, pondering expression on her face. Silver too felt a twinge of jealousy at their closeness.

"Well now," Heart said, shouldering the shopping bags, "I'm going to pop upstairs and wrap these real quick. You kids feel free to help yourselves to everything on the table. Silver and I made plenty for everyone."

"Wait, wait, Sil-Sil, you cooked? For _me?_" Gold gasped, holding a hand to his chest in mock surprise. "Well aren't you going to be the best wife ever!" he teased, putting an arm around the red-head.

"_Three_…" Silver counted, glaring more intensely than ever.

"Aw, come on, I'm just joking around," Gold muttered, releasing Silver's shoulder regardless.

"You kids enjoy," Heart said, readjusting the shopping bags in her arms. "I'll serve our proper dinner once I get back. And be sure your Pokémon get fed, too," she added before disappearing upstairs.

"It's so strange being in here after all this time," Crystal said, surveying the house. "It's the same but so different at the same time."

"Nn, that's right; I'd forgotten you lived here before," Soul said. "Would you like a tour?"

Crystal smiled weakly and shook her head. "No, that's all right. Maybe later after the party or something."

"Would'ja look at that spread!" Gold said with a whistle, admiring the layout of food on the table in the dining room. The entire surface was covered in various bowls of chips, sandwiches, fruits and vegetables, and assorted other party foods, all surrounding the cake in the center, which was decorated simply but nicely, Silver's name scrawled across the white surface in red icing. Gold put an arm around Silver's shoulders and mocked wiping a tear from his eye. "Keep this up and you'll be _my_ wife someday, Sil-Sil."

"_Two_…"

"Okay, seriously, now you're just being funny," Gold protested, removing his arm nonetheless.

"You and mom were busy, I see," Soul said, admiring their handiwork.

Silver's face flushed a bit despite his extreme desire to look composed, and he turned his head to mask it. "It's nothing, really. Ms. Heart did all the work. I just set everything out."

"There's actually a lot here," Soul noticed with slight surprise. "It's almost like she knew we'd be having extra guests…"  
"Well, are we going to just stand around staring at it, or what?" Gold said, rolling up his sleeves. He motioned to grab Soul's arm but was surprised by Crystal latching onto his instead.

"Come on, you, let's sit over there," she said, indicating the chairs on the opposite side of the table and dragging him off with her.

"My mom can be a little chatty," Soul apologized, turning to Silver. "I hope she didn't bore you too much."

Silver's jaw clenched nervously. To be sure, the conversation had been anything _but_ boring. He'd decided, however, that his relationship with Soul was fragile in its current state—he was, secretly, grateful for Gold and Crystal's inclusion to the party, because they could alleviate the otherwise awkward tension between them—so he wasn't going to risk ruining what little bit of stability they had by admitting he knew about her dark past. So, in response, he shook his head and tried to be casual. "Nah, it was fine."

Soul nodded. "All right, then," she said, turning to the table and rubbing her hands together, "let's dig in, shall we?"

Gold reached for a nearby plate, adding, "You don't have to tell me twice!"

* * *

The party went well. They ate, exchanged fun stories, fed their Pokémon, and generally enjoyed themselves. Silver found he actually liked this very much; after being alone for so many weeks, it was comforting to be in the warmth surrounded by good company. Even Gold's joking and prodding seemed to irritate him less. Best of all, Soul seemed to be melting some of her iciness toward him, and Silver felt relief at seeing her smile, even if it was never directed specifically at him. When plates and empty food bowls were cleaned and Pokémon were returned to their PokéBalls, they dimmed the lights and gathered close to light the candles on the cake and sing.

It was very nostalgic, although a little embarrassing. Silver couldn't recall the last time he'd had so much attention focused on him. he caught snatches of Soul's voice as it stuck out from the others' singing—a feat in and of itself considering the rowdy performance Gold was giving—and Silver felt a melancholy, bittersweet pit in his stomach. He was so preoccupied with trying to pick out her specific tones that he almost didn't noticed when they'd finished. Flustering, he pretended he'd merely hesitated for effect, and he blew out the candles.

"All right, then," Heart said as she turned on the lights again, "Soul, why don't you give Silver his gifts while I cut cake for everyone."

Soul retrieved a small pile of gift-wrapped parcels and a sizeable gift bag from the living room as her mother indicated. The wrapping paper was Christmasy, no doubt leftover from previous holiday wrapping.

"I'm afraid there are only a few," Soul said as she handed Silver the large red gift bag, green tissue paper erupting out of the top.

"It's fine," Silver said, taking the gift from her, heart pounding. He had been curious what she'd gotten him all evening, less because of the items and more because of the emotions attached to them.

"There was a lot of people, and there wasn't a whole lot left…" Soul continued, biting her lip.

"Seriously, Soul, I don't mind," Silver insisted as he removed tissue paper from the bag. "Anything you got me is more than I've gotten in years."

She smiled weakly, reassured for the moment.

Silver groped at the bottom of the bag through another layer of tissue paper. His fingertips brushed a thick, flannel fabric, and from the bag he retrieved a long, solid black pea coat.

"All I've ever seen you in is your usual jacket," Soul explained as he turned it front to back to examine it. "It's been really cold this winter, so I figured you should have a proper coat."

Silver's fingers traced the lining; it was fleece inside. He'd felt the sting of the season change recently, so he admitted the coat was definitely needed.

His next few gifts completed his winter set with a pair of red woolen gloves, a red scarf, and a black woolen beanie.

"I know it's all a little practical," Soul apologized, "but you really should be dressing warmer if you don't want to get sick."

"Aww, Soul, you spoil Sil-Sil," Gold said with a broad grin through a mouthful of cake. "But even you should know that the cold is what fuels Sil-Sil's sunny personality!"

"You're about to see how sunny my personality can be in a minute," Silver said, arching an eyebrow at him.

"Now, now, Sil-Sil, you know it's your icy stabbings that we all love about you most," Gold said, wagging a finger at him. "Oh, and by the way, in case you were wondering, your gift from me is the gift of my presence. I know, I'm so generous."

"I'd rather you be even more generous with a gift of your _silence_," Silver said with a smirk.

Gold paused for effect for roughly ten seconds. "...Yeah, that's about all the silence you'll get out of me."

"All right," Soul interjected, leaning in and placing a square package in front of Silver on the table, "this is the last gift. I was really lucky to snag this one."

"Ooo, ooo, is this the grandma-punching gift?" Gold asked as Silver picked up the parcel.

"For the _last_ time, Gold, I did _not_ punch anybody's grandmother!"

Silver felt the weight of the box in his hands. It had some heft to it, but it wasn't necessarily what he'd call, "heavy." Sliding his finger under the wrapping seam, he ripped into the gift. He stared at the opened present, genuinely surprised. A picture of a red-accented PokéGear stared back at him from the packaging, and on top sat two upgrade cards: one for maps, and the other for radio.

"Ooo, ooo, Sil-Sil, now I can send you dirty text messages!" Gold exclaimed, flashing his teeth.

"You were always borrowing mine," Soul explained, wringing her hands. "I never knew if you wanted one, but when I saw it there in the store, I thought of you and snatched it."

"This looks like a newer model than the one I have," Crystal said, sliding the box toward her and retrieving her own for a comparison.

"PokéGear are really expensive, though, Soul," Silver said, looking up at her from his chair. "You didn't have to spend so much on me."

Soul beamed at him, seemingly pleased—it was the first smile she'd directly given him in ages. "Don't be silly; what are friends for? Besides, I had the money to spare, so don't worry about it."

Silver's face flooded with color, and he panicked internally as he tried to quell the sudden rush of happiness that had shot through him in shockwaves. Friends. _Friends!_ She'd said they were friends! What a huge difference from even the day before!

"Well, it's getting late," Crystal said, rising from the table. "Gold and I had better get back to his parents' house."

"Are you sure you won't have some cake?" Heart offered, suggesting a plate in her hand.

"Oh, no, thank-you," Crystal said, shaking her head. "I'm in training."

"Training?" Heart repeated.

"Nn, for the Pokéathalon," she said, nodding. They're on break for the winter until April, but I have to try to maintain so I don't lose my edge."

"But I thought I'd heard the Pokéathalon was an event for Pokémon only?" Heart asked, genuinely curious.

Crystal blushed slightly. "It is, but I believe that as a Trainer, I should be able to do everything that I ask of my Pokémon—within reason, of course—so we work out together."

"Yeah, you guys should see her in action some time," Gold said proudly, putting a hand on his girlfriend's shoulder. "She really puts flabby guys like me to shame." He patted his gullet, swollen with food, for emphasis.

"Not nearly as shameful as when you missed that Rhyhorn in the Safari Zone two weeks," Crystal said with a wry smile.

"Hey, that was a fluke, I swear," Gold defended.

"Uh-huh, and the fact that you were gasping and sweating inside of thirty-seconds' chase wasn't because you're out of shape at all."

Gold stuck his lips out in an exaggerated pout, cheeks pink.

"Sil-Sil, you'll have to give me your number tomorrow after you set up your PokéGear. We should stay in touch," Crystal said, turning to him as she put on her coat at the door.

"Nn, sure," he said, shrugging.

"And me, too!" Gold insisted. "I'll send you heartfelt texts every night before bed and every morning right when I wake up."

"Please don't," Silver said, sighing.

"Happy birthday, Sil-Sil," Crystal said with a wave as she opened the door.

"And Merry Christmas!" Gold added as he followed behind her.

* * *

"Phew, some party," Gold said as they tromped through the snow. New Bark Town was quiet; everyone was no doubt at home, spending the holiday with family. Gold rubbed his belly affectionately. "Soul's mom really did a good job on the food, even if it was simple. I could've eaten like a dozen more of those finger sandwiches, and dinner was great, too."

Crystal walked a few paces ahead, biting her lip. Nagging thoughts ate away at her, twisting her stomach in knots.

"I'll definitely sleep good after all that," Gold continued, oblivious. "I should have brought Azumarill, but Mom's been doting on her lately, and—"

"_You like Soul, don't you?_"

Crystal's outburst surprised him, and he looked up to find her standing still with her back to him, her clenched fists shaking. He considered the question for a second. "Well, of course I like Soul. We've been friends for—"

"No!" Crystal blurted, whirling around. "No, you...you have _feelings_ for her, don't you?" When he didn't speak, she continued, voice quaking. "Anyone who knows you as well as I do could see it. The way you talk to her, the way you look at her...It's completely obvious that she's more than just a friend to you. So why don't you just admit it: you like her, don't you?" He still didn't respond, but instead stood quietly in the snow, avoiding eye contact. Her frustration boiled, and she shouted, "_Don't you?!_" Tears spilled down her blistering cheeks, briefly warming and then freezing them in seconds.

Fresh snow slowly drifted down upon them, a new coat for the festive night. Gold's hand raised absentmindedly at the elbow as he stood silently, listening to his jealous girlfriend's sobs, and a single snowflake landed in his gloved palm. He stared at it and watched as it melted, pondering how to proceed. Suddenly, he lifted his head and spoke.

"...You know, I really love buckwheat noodles."

The statement was so bizarre that Crystal momentarily stopped crying from the shock of it. Rage bubbled inside her. "What in the hell—"

Gold held up a hand to silence her, as if to imply he had a point. "When I was a kid, I fell in love with buckwheat noodles. I loved everything about them, and they were easily my favorite food in the whole world. But my mom didn't make them very often because my dad didn't like them, so whenever I had them, it was really special. I truly savored every moment I had with them. But, as time went on, my mom made them less and less, to the point where she no longer made them any more. To say it really bummed me out would be an understatement.

"My mom saw how upset I was about it, and she wanted me to be happy, so she introduced me to ramen instead. 'Maybe you can like these, too,' she said. And for a while, I did. It had a similar feeling, and I grew to like ramen a lot. Before I'd even realized it, I'd grown to love ramen. But…" He looked up at Crystal. "No matter how much I tried, ramen could never replace buckwheat noodles in my heart. It helped numb the pain, but deep down, I always longed for the love I'd found in my youth. I tried to forget about it and move on, but no amount of ramen could ever compare. I still care about ramen a lot, but...at the end of it all, it's just not as special to me as buckwheat noodles. They always have been and always will be my first food love."

Crystal stared at him, flummoxed, blinking blankly. "D...Did you seriously just compare Soul and me to noodles?"

Gold fidgeted a little, blushing. "Well..._I_ thought it was a good analogy…" he said.

Crystal paused, and then a grin burst across her face, and she covered her mouth. "_Pfft!_" She exploded into laughter. Roaring with mirth, all her insecurities melted away in that moment. Without realizing it, tears of relief started dripping down her face, and her laughter swiftly transitioned into sobs. She put her face in her hands and bawled, her chest aching from the tangle of emotions. Two arms wrapped around her, and when she looked up, cold lips found hers—her first kiss.

Snow fell gently on their meeting until they slowly drifted apart, foreheads resting against one another.

"Don't you ever doubt how much I love you, Crys," Gold said seriously, an odd contrast to his usual demeanor.

She lifted her head and looked up at him—his deep gray eyes were distinctly sincere. She blushed; she'd heard him say he was his first love before, but this was the first time she'd heard those three words in that order. She looked away, slightly ashamed. "It's because I love you so much that I got so worried."

Gold smiled and took hold of her chin to move her back into kissing range. When they parted again, he took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Come on, let's get home. It's freezing out here."

They walked hand in hand, both feeling warm inside despite the snow all around them. Rubbing his stomach with his free hand, Gold frowned.

"You know, all that talking about buckwheat noodles made me really want some…" he said.

Crystal smiled. "Well, maybe I'll make you some for New Year's."

"Do you mean it?" Gold gasped with child-like excitement.

Crystal chuckled. "_Absolutely_."

He couldn't resist grinning. "Merry Christmas, Crys."

Crystal smiled too and squeezed his hand. "Merry Christmas, Gold."

* * *

Silver sat in the still of the living room, face barely illuminated by the embers in the fireplace grate and the faint glow of the lights on the Christmas tree in the corner. The clock on the mantel indicated it was almost midnight. Soul, Chocobo, Heart, and Pyro had all gone to bed, leaving Silver alone with his thoughts. He'd tried to fall asleep, lying on his back in the small guest room staring at the ceiling in the darkness, but to no avail. Sleep had been escaping him so much lately…

He, of course, knew why. He'd denied it for weeks, pretended it wasn't true, pretended he hadn't ruined his life with his own temper and arrogance. His subconscious was cruel, though, because the more he denied it, the more restless he became. Finally, it reached the point where he had no way of ignoring it.

He was in love with Soul.

He loved her. He loved her so much that not being with her literally drove him to madness. Every time he closed his eyes, he dreamt about her, about seeing her smile, holding her, being with her...Thoughts of Soul had completely consumed him. And yet, realizing his feelings wasn't enough to relieve his stress. He'd scared her away—worse, told her he'd never love her, and yet there he was, pining for her. Admitting he loved her only brought more pain and self-loathing, because it meant he was the architect of his own misery.

Finding the last known whereabouts of his father was only one reason he went looking for her, and a hollow one, at best. Locating Giovanni was important to him, more important than anything he'd ever done, and yet...it would be empty without Soul. It made him feel downright pitiful. He'd been primarily on his own since his mother's death, and he'd prided himself on being independent. Yet suddenly, out of nowhere, one girl became so important that contemplating living without her gave his chest physical pain. It was pathetic, it was weak, it was completely illogical. And yet, he didn't care. His previous self would have called him a weakling, but when he really thought about it, his past self didn't seem worth keeping. What was the use of being angry all the time, living every day alone, compared to living a life of happiness with Soul?

Silver's thumb rubbed across the top of his new PokéGear as he stared at the fading embers in the grate. He'd considered each gift as he'd lied awake in the bed upstairs. Each one of them was something he lacked and needed. Each one was bought with care and consideration for _him_. Perhaps he was dwelling on it too much, or perhaps it was wishful thinking, but...could his gifts be a sign that she still loved him?

He'd wondered it since meeting her again at Mt. Silver. Seeing her angry was disheartening. Seeing her getting on with Red was worse. He hadn't even considered her moving on and finding someone else, and the thought terrified him. He was so relieved when she chose him that he swore he'd do everything he could to get back in her good graces. But perhaps he wasn't so far-removed from her heart as he thought?

"...Silver?"

The soft calling of his name alarmed him so badly, he dropped his PokéGear. He turned to find the origin, who stood at the entrance to the stairs. "S-Soul!" he flustered, heart thumping. He coughed a little, trying to compose himself. "Uh, what're you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same question," she said as she crossed the room, dressed in her red long-sleeve, button-down fleece pajama set. She plopped on the sofa beside him. "I came down to get a drink of water. You?"

He fumbled for his PokéGear on the ground; she was sitting so close to him that it made him nervous. "Just couldn't sleep, I suppose."

"Ah. Excited for Santa's visit, are we?" she teased with a grin.

Silver chuckled. "Nah, I'm pretty sure I'm on the naughty list."

Soul's cheeriness fell, and her eyelids drooped. "Nn, I suppose after everything that's happened…"

He swore in his mind. Great, now he'd reminded her of what an asshole he'd been. Fantastic.

They sat for a long, awkward moment in silence, nothing but the ticking clock on the mantelpiece to fill the void. Silver's insides squirmed. He had to break the tension somehow.

"So, Soul...Thanks again for the birthday presents," he stumbled. "I really appreciate all of them."

"Oh, it's no problem," Soul insisted, tucking her bangs behind her ear. "It's like I said: what are friends for?"

"Friends…" Silver contemplated the word aloud. "Just yesterday, you denied we were friends, but...do you still want to be friends with me?"

She paused, obviously thinking. "I didn't honestly think we'd ever _stopped_ being friends. I admit, I was mad at you, but when you get right down to it, I'd hoped we'd at least stay friends. That is, if _you_ still want to."

His heart leapt. "Of cour—" He coughed and changed direction mid-route. "I mean, yeah, I'd like that."

"That's good," Soul said with a sigh of relief.

"Great, even."

"Nn."

They sat in silence again. Silver stroked the PokéGear in his fingers with his thumbs, staring at the blinking lights on the Christmas tree, and Soul looked off at the other side of the room and cleared her throat.

"Look...Soul…" Silver began after another minute of speechlessness. He sighed and turned to her. "I'm...I'm sorry about all that crap I said before. Before...Before you left, I mean. I was being a complete ass, and I'm...I'm really sorry."

Soul shook her head. "Nn, no, I'm sorry for running off so quickly," she said. "You were frustrated and probably said some things without thinking."

"It still doesn't excuse what I said," Silver said, eyeing his lap. "You had every right to leave." He looked into her eyes, which flickered in the low light; they were beautiful. "So I'm sorry."

Soul smiled a little, placed her hand on his, and squeezed his fingers with affection. "Apology accepted."

He loved this girl. The touch of her hand sent his heart into a frenzy. He was grateful when she let go—his palms were starting to sweat—but at the same time frustrated because he wanted more. He wanted to grab hold of her hand and never let go. He wanted to reach out and hug her, caress her, feel the warmth of her body against his. In his madness, he started scanning the festively-decorated room for mistletoe for an excuse to kiss her.

"It's funny..." Soul said suddenly, bringing him back to reality. "It's funny how crazy things got between us. I was thinking during the party how nice it was to forget all that drama and just be normal around each other."

"Yeah, I was thinking that, too," he agreed.

Yes. _Yes!_ This was good. She wanted things to be good between them again. All he had to do was tell her about his feelings, and then they could be happy, just like he'd dreamt about each night since his realization. His heart drummed so fiercely against his ribcage, he was certain it was audible.

"Soul—"

"Silver—"

They stopped and chuckled nervously at each other.

"You first, Soul," Silver offered; maybe she was beating him to the punch. Even if she wasn't, nothing she could say would stop him from confessing afterward.

"What if…" She hesitated, biting her lip. "_What if we just forgot about my confession altogether?_"

Silver's heart sank to his stomach, and his mouth instantly became dry. "...What do you mean, exactly?" Please say he was misinterpreting.

"I mean," she said, straightening in her seat, "what if, from here on out, we just pretended like my confession never happened?"

No. No no no no no no no no no. He felt ill. What was happening? It was like one of his nightmares.

"I mean, let's face it, things only got complicated after I blurted that I had feelings for you," she rationalized. "Before then, we were actually getting along really well."

"I guess that's true," Silver agreed, and it was; things had definitely been better between them before that incident. But the only reason things got worse was because he was a colossal jerk. He wasn't that guy any more! He loved her! He'd changed!

"So I thought, since we're going to be travelling together again for a little while, that it'd be better if we just acted like the whole thing never happened," Soul said, eyeing her lap.

He had to stop this. He couldn't let this happen. Not when he was so close. "Look, Soul, I don't want you to do that if you…" He swallowed, praying what he was about to say was true. "...if you still have feelings for me."

Soul paused for a long, tense moment, staring at her lap. Finally, she opened her mouth and spoke softly. "_I don't._"

Her words pierced through him, like she'd stabbed him through the chest. He felt himself sink and grow colder in his sorrow. He hadn't cried in years, but in that moment, he actually felt his eyes water.

"I...decided to move on weeks ago," she lied. "I still want us to be friends, but I don't have any more intimate feelings for you," she lied. Soul took a deep breath and looked up at him. "This is what I want," she lied.

He swallowed. It didn't help; his mouth and throat remained dry. In a voice that cracked despite his best efforts, he responded. "Sure, that's okay with me," he lied. "I mean, it's not like I had my feelings invested like you did," he lied, and he instantly feel dirtier for saying it. His heart crumbled with each word. "It won't bother me at all to pretend it all never happened," he lied. He wanted to throw up.

"That's good," Soul nodded.

"Great, even."

"Nn."

The silence was crushing. The misery he'd felt during all those weeks of her absence paled in comparison to the sheer abysmal gloom he felt in that moment. It was as if someone had taken all the happiness he'd felt only minutes before and filled him with an equally-heavy opposite.

"Right, then...I'm going to bed," Soul said, standing. She retreated to the kitchen and returned shortly with her glass of water. "You should get some rest, too, you know." She forced a smile. "Naughty list or no, Santa won't come if you're still awake."

He meant to grin, but he wasn't entirely certain if his face cooperated or rebelled and remained stony.

The clock on the mantle chimed midnight, and they both looked up, surprised.

"Ah! Merry Christmas, Silver," Soul said with a polite smile.

"Nn, Merry Christmas, Soul," Silver replied, nodding.

Figuring that was enough, Soul bobbed her head once in farewell and headed for the stairs. Shutting her eyes tightly, she disappeared up them, holding back the tears she knew would undoubtedly come the moment her head hit the pillow.

Silver watched her vanish up the stairs and then sunk his face into his hands, dropping his new PokéGear onto the area rug with a soft thud. It was worse than he could have ever dreamed. How could he possibly go on acting like he _didn't_ love her? How could he nod gruffly and act all aloof when he wanted to scream he loved her until he cried? How would he ever get any decent sleep again?

How had his favorite birthday in years become the worst day of his life?

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"_Don't leave me alone!_"


	38. Chapter 38: Bad Dreams

**Note:** Trying to get back on a monthly schedule, so here you go!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Eight

_Bad Dreams_

"_What if we just forgot about my confession altogether?_"

Soul's words echoed in the void. Silver turned round and round in the enveloping blackness, desperately searching for a source.

"I still want us to be friends, but I don't have any more intimate feelings for you."

"Soul!" Silver cried out. "Soul, _please_, don't!"

"This is what I want."

"But it's not what _I_ want!" Silver shouted in another direction. "Soul, _please_, you have to listen to me!"

"...You're the one who made me leave in the first place," her voice said from his shoulder.

Silver whirled around. Soul stood behind him, her eyes shadowed by the brim of her hat.

"You didn't want me around," she said.

"That's not true!" Silver disagreed, desperately shaking his head. "I was just being an idiot."

"You said you'd never love me."

"I know that," Silver said, clenching his fist as he eyed the ground. "I know I said that, but Soul, _please_." He grabbed hold of her shoulders. "_Please_, Soul, I didn't mean it!"

The shadowy-eyed Soul tilted her head further downward. "...You're lying."

"No, I'm not!" Silver exclaimed. "Soul, I _love_ you!"

"You're lying!" Soul cried, slapping his hands away. "You never loved me, and you never will!"

"That's not true!" Silver pleaded. "I'm in love with you, and I have been all this time! I just never realized it!"

"Stop it!" Soul screamed, clutching her head. "You're a demon and a liar, and _I hate you!_"

The vision of Soul evaporated into a cloud of smoke. Silver whirled around to find her, hands trembling.

"Soul!" he yelled. "Soul, please, come back! Don't leave me alone! _Don't leave me alone!_"

* * *

Silver's eyes shot open. He panted, strangely out of breath. Hand ruffled through red bangs, clasping his forehead, which was sweaty and cool. Crimson eyes darted around, trying to make sense of everything.

He was in the guest bedroom in Soul's house, he remembered. The room was very small, only furnished by a full-size bed in the center of the back wall and a chest of drawers with a vanity mirror on top opposite it. When unoccupied, the room was used for storage, he figured, based on the various colored plastic tubs stacked in the far right corner. Faint sunlight crept in through the window on the far left side of the wall opposite the bed. Silver rolled toward the door on his left and rummaged under his pillow for his PokéGear to check the time. It was early, but obviously dawn, judging by the light from the window.

He sighed and sat up in the bed, staring across the cramped room at his reflection in the vanity. More nightmares, just as he had expected. Just the night prior—a mere few hours ago—he thought he would finally put an end to it. Only hours before, he thought he would end his greatest birthday ever with a confession to the girl of his dreams—literally—and then retire for a well-missed peaceful night's sleep. Instead, he had returned to his bed empty and heartbroken, left to toss and turn in the turmoil of his unyielding cycle of bad dreams and insomnia.

He wasn't surprised; his sleep patterns had been anything but regular since Soul left four weeks prior. It had started subtly—the first few nights, he had only missed maybe an hour of sleep at most from the rare strange dream—but all-too-quickly, his descent into unrest began.

Silver put his face through his hands and then looked back at his reflection. He stared at himself for a long time, feeling nothing but pain and sadness. And to think, he had honestly thought back then he could sink no lower.

* * *

Silver awoke with a start. The clock on his bedside table in the Pokémon Center read 1 AM. He groaned and rolled over. Just a bad dream...One bad dream meant nothing. Sleep...he needed sleep…

He exploded into consciousness more violently than before. He turned; the clock read 2:30 AM. No. Sleep. He wasn't going to let his brain get the best of him.

3:05 AM.

3:40 AM.

4:50 AM.

6:25 AM.

Dark circles accented his lower eyelids as he lied on his back, staring wide-eyed and restless at the ceiling. Dawn creeped through the curtains, the start of another grey November morning. Another day without Soul.

He sighed and put his feet on the floor. Maybe a hot shower would settle his nerves. It was early enough that he could probably have the shower room all to himself.

Metal knobs creaked, the shower head groaned, and then water erupted in a cascade, instantly creating steam against the frigid tile. Silver joined the stream, allowing the water to pour over his face, soothing his weary eyes. Two nights in a row, he recounted with a grimace. Two nights he'd lied down for rest, only to be denied by his psyche. Two nights his brain had betrayed him with thoughts of _her_.

He shook his head briskly, slinging water from his dampened hair. No point in dwelling on someone who was gone. He was better without her, anyway. His sleep problems were probably a direct result of the stress she caused him in the past month. He shoved any thoughts of her into the back of his mind, ignoring them.

Toweling his hair back in his room, he sat on the bed and glanced at the clock. 7 AM. The nurses typically swept through the rooms at 8 AM, so he still had a little time. He flopped back on the bed, lying across it incorrectly, his feet still on the floor. Sleep...His eyes were so heavy, and they throbbed dully. The damp towel on his head kept his soggy hair from completely freezing him. With what little strength he hadn't lost to laziness, he pulled the blanket backward over as much of his body as he could manage before his arm fell limply on his chest. The cold room around him melted into blackness…

He awoke sharply after what felt like only a few seconds to a knock at the door. Groaning, he sat up in the bed and looked at the clock. It was ten past eight; the nurses were making their rounds to boot Trainers from their rented rooms. Sighing, Silver arose from the bed.

Violet City was cold and harsh, he regarded as he stepped out of the Center doors. His long hair was still a bit damp, and the freezing air took no time reminding him. He shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his usual jacket, a jacket much-too-thin for the wintery weather. December was coming very soon, the month of his birthday. Thinking about that only made him more bitter.

He ambled aimlessly toward the outskirts of town, not particularly caring where he was headed. The past several days had been like that. He woke up, he ate, he walked until his feet gave way, and he slept where they failed him. Luck gave him a warm place to sleep the night before when he finally ended up in Violet City, but usually, he slept outdoors, huddled deep inside his thick sleeping bag, shivering against the cold. He felt nothing inside. After spending so much time in a hurricane of emotions, he welcomed the nothing, the numbness, the void. All that was left from his emotional purge was hatred: hatred of himself.

Silver was used to self-loathing. If anything, it was comforting, familiar. He had spent his whole life scrutinizing every action he had ever made, doubting himself at every turn. He was tremendously hyper critical. All of his failures only served to amplify his contempt. Silver figured his recent dream problem was no doubt just another exercise in a long history of self-deprecation. The only thing that puzzled him was the nature of the dreams.

They were always about _her_.

Dreaming about Soul wasn't the issue. He spent every waking hour avoiding thoughts of her, shoving her into the deepest recesses of his mind, so it was only natural, he relented, that she would crop up in his subconscious. No, it was the content of the dreams that bothered him.

Silver swore as he huddled into his shoulders against the wind, trudging on toward Route 31, mind empty. HIs sneakers crunched on the frost on the ground beneath them. He kept his focus on his feet, not really caring about his destination. Nothing mattered any more. He was alone again, just like he wanted...right?

Time passed slowly as he marched onward, zombie-like and hollow. He guessed, judging by the position of the sun and the growling of his stomach, that it was about noon when he stopped for a break. He nibbled on a granola bar in silence as he sat on a large rock, looking at his surroundings but not truly perceiving anything. However, something on the horizon caught his eye, and, suddenly gripped by curiosity, he arose to investigate.

He stood before the black doorway carved into the rock face, stunned. It was Dark Cave. They had agreed Dark Cave was the next checkpoint on the list. Perhaps he would find her if he took a look…?

He shook his head vigorously. Stupid. He was being stupid. The idea was stupid, the cave was stupid, _she_ was stupid. He turned around with intent to leave, but some form of magnetism kept him glued in place. Still...Even if it _was_ stupid, he was already nearby...It wouldn't hurt to look...for a little while.

Dark Cave was aptly named, he mused as he tromped through the stone cavern, guided only by his flashlight. Wild Zubat flitted by overhead, disturbed by the sounds of his feet that echoed off the cave walls. It was, at the very least, considerably warmer inside. Perhaps, in some deep, dank corner, he would find Giovanni, huddled over a small fire.

Silver smothered a yawn with his spare hand and then immediately rubbed his eyes in follow-up. Maybe it was the darkness that suddenly reminded him how sleepy he was. He yawned again and felt his eyes droop. His steps began to stagger, and the flashlight in his hand lowered as his head bobbed, on the cusp of dozing. He allowed himself the pleasure of closing his eyes just for a moment…

"Silver…!"

Red eyes flew open, and he whirled around, casting the flashlight beam wildly about. He had only closed his eyes for a few seconds, but he swore he had heard a female voice. When he was certain no one was around, he sighed and wiped his forehead. He had imagined it. His mind was overtired and playing tricks on him. He needed rest…

A bright white flash pierced the darkness, and Silver's Feraligatr emerged, large and menacing. "Stand guard for me, would you?" Silver asked the creature as he unpacked his sleeping bag. "I've gotta get some sleep, and I don't want any low level Zubats swarming all over me."

His Feraligatr growled an affirmative but stared at his master in the darkness, obviously concerned.

Silver noticed the Pokémon's intent and shook his head. "I'm fine, just tired," he insisted. He crawled into his sleeping bag. The ground was lumpy and uncomfortable, but he would make due. Not long after lying down, the sounds of the cave faded away into silence.

* * *

"Silver!"

The redhead groaned and burrowed into his sleeping bag.

"Oh, come on, now, you lazy bones, breakfast is getting cold," she said, shaking him.

Silver's head emerged to find Soul's face beaming back at him. He rubbed his eyes and grinned slightly. "Morning," he mumbled, still sleepy.

She smiled, cheeks rosy. "Good morning!"

Silver sat up and stretched, yawning. Warm sunlight peaked in through the cave mouth, and he glanced over at Soul, who had returned to tending breakfast, instructing her Torchic, Chocobo, to stoke the fire with his flames. He grinned. Another typical morning with Soul.

He couldn't be happier.

"Here you go," Soul said, handing Silver a bowl of oatmeal as he joined her by the fire.

The two ate in cheery silence, enjoying the meal and each other's company. Silver felt completely at ease. He mused to himself that he could probably start every day in this way for the rest of his life and be content.

"Silver?"

He glanced up at the mention of his name, and the entire scenery changed. Rain pelted his body and thunder roared in the distance. He and Soul sat on a bench across from a Pokémon Center, two umbrellas propped on either side of them and a parasol attached to the bench above them. Silver looked around, startled, but Soul didn't seem to recognize the change at all. The sadness on her face was familiar.

She hunched forward, deflated, and cried into her hands. "The truth is...I really like you, Silver."

Words echoed around them—his own words, in his voice. "...If you had to get an answer from me right now...as to whether or not I feel that way about you too…" The final words escaped his own mouth without his control. "..._the answer would be no_."

Visible cracks broke across Soul's face, as if she were made of porcelain and had suffered a huge internal blow. A cold wind whipped over them, turning the rain to frost, and the scenery melted again, this time into tall grass and crumbling, ancient buildings. Rage that wasn't his bubbled in his stomach, as if he were ill, and words erupted from his mouth, like verbal vomit. "I will _never_ feel about you the way you feel about me, because there is no force in this _universe_ that would _ever_ make me see you as anything more than an annoying, busy-bodied _pain in the ass_."

With each insult, the cracks in Soul's face and hands splintered and spread. Silver watched the display, mortified, covering his mouth to prevent any further damage. His insides writhed, as if he were going to be sick again, and he strained to withhold it, but the words tumbled out between his fingers, full of poison and malice. "I _don't_ like you, I've _never_ liked you, and I never _will_ like you! So _leave me the hell alone!_"

Soul's doppelganger shattered like glass as everything around him grew dark. Silver sank to his knees, trembling. He stared at the spot where Soul had been, eyes watering. "No…" he whispered, voice quaking. "Don't...Don't leave me alone…"

A vision of a figure lying beneath a white sheet in a hospital bed flashed before his eyes.

"Don't leave me alone…!"

The sheet blew back, revealing Soul beneath, eyes wide and glassy, no longer alive.

"_Don't leave me alone!_"

* * *

Silver awoke violently, his voice echoing off the cavern walls; he had obviously spoken the last part aloud. He sat up in his sleeping bag, gasping, his whole body drenched in sweat. His Feraligatr hovered over him, visually concerned, a feat for the normally grisly-looking monster. Swallowing, Silver's shaky hand reached out and patted the muzzle of the Pokémon.

* * *

Sleep was overrated, right? He told himself that over the next several days. He tried to focus on searching Dark Cave, and when that proved as pointless as he anticipated, he tried to focus on ignoring how exhausted he was.

Life became rather meaningless very quickly. He stopped staying in Pokémon Centers—he feared his night terrors would draw unwanted attention—and he spent every waking moment trying to ignore that Soul ever existed, much less traveled with him. This backfired, however, the second he closed his eyes. Thoughts of Soul filled his subconscious as soon as he dozed, usually of past encounters and mistakes. He dreamed about shoving her and calling her weak, he dreamed about yelling at her and making her cry, and...very rarely, to his confusion, he...he dreamed about kissing her.

The first time it happened, he tried his best to shrug it off as a meaningless dream. He wasn't in his right mind, after all, despite his best efforts to find purpose in his to day to day mundanity. He was exhausted and stressed and full of more bitterness than ever before. Perhaps his brain was just screwing with him. But as the kissing dreams increased in frequency, he started to wonder, secretly, in a part of his heart he refused to recognize on the surface, if there was something to all of it.

He awoke from such a dream on the outskirts of Goldenrod, his heart pounding. He had camped in a small cluster of trees the night before, he groggily recalled. One thing he had to admit, disgruntled as he was to do so: the kissing dreams gave a more pleasant awakening.

Silver sat up and rubbed his eyes, which were accented by dark circles so distinct, he looked bruised. His eyes hurt badly, and his whole body felt stiff and heavy. Another typical morning, he mused.

A granola bar dangled from his mouth as he dug in his backpack, scrounging for more food. To his dismay, he found none, and he swore under his breath. He'd have to go into the city for supplies. He hated shopping. That had always been _her_ duty. He swore again; he'd voluntarily thought of her. Sighing, he resigned himself to his fate.

Goldenrod City was as busy and crowded as ever. Lots of people clustered together always made Silver grumpy, but today, they only reminded him of his own loneliness. He shoved his frozen hands into his jacket as he made his way down an alley toward a grocery store of which he knew. Coincidentally, this route took him past an open-air ramen stand, and he hesitated outside it. Memories from not so long ago flooded into his mind. Six weeks prior, he had sat on the very stool he stood beside. He had sat there, having a meal with Soul. Their entire journey began in that very spot. A journey, he remembered as he crashed back into reality, that was now over. Jaw clenching, he turned and continued onward.

Several purchases later, Silver made his way into the heart of the city, shouldering his bag, which was much heavier now that it was was full of food. He'd caught the date while in the grocery store—he didn't bother keeping up with the day or the time any more. It was December already, and two weeks to the day since Soul had left. Two weeks that felt like two hundred. Silver shuffled through the crowded Goldenrod, people chattering and laughing all around him. He hated people. In that moment, he especially hated _happy_ people. The frosty chill in the air only served to further support the numbness in his body, and he slumped his way through the throng, hands in his jacket pockets and a glazed look in his eyes. In his periphery, he spotted the Goldenrod Department Store, and, feeling parched and wanting to get away from the bustle of the city, he decided a drink on the rooftop was a great idea.

* * *

"You wouldn't go see her?"

"No."

"Not even if she wanted to see you?"

"She doesn't want to see me."

"And you know that for a fact?"

Silver sat across from Leaf at the table, more agitated than ever. She had tricked him into finding out where Soul was, and now she was haranguing him about going to see her. Finally, he had enough, and his temper flared.

"Look," Silver said, rising briskly from the table, "I didn't ask you to tell me where she was, and it's none of your damn business whether I go see her or not. So just stay the hell out of it!" And with that he stormed off toward the elevator. Mashing the button on the wall, he waited impatiently, adjusting his bag on his shoulder. As it arrived with a ping, he shoved his hands in his jacket pockets and disappeared within.

He stood at the back of the elevator, staring at his ghastly reflection in the glass. Of course. Soul being in New Bark Town was obvious. Her mother was still there. She had a family, a home she could return to. He had momentarily forgotten people did that. Of course she would go there. But it didn't matter. He wasn't going to see her. He didn't _need_ to see her.

The elevator shook as it came to a halt on the third floor, where two girls boarded, laden with shopping bags.

"I'm just saying, that place is strange," one girl said to the other, obviously continuing a prior conversation.

"But it's all in good fun, and you can take such cute pictures with your Pokémon," the other girl insisted. "Who doesn't like to put on a costume every now and again?"

"Yeah, but I mean, after everything that happened here last year, don't you think it's in bad taste?" The elevator reached the ground floor, and she adjusted the bags in one hand. "Who in their right mind would want to dress up like someone from Team Rocket?"

Silver's ears prickled at the name, and he turned as the elevator doors opened. Seeing his lead escaping, he found boldness in himself he didn't know he possessed. "Excuse me! Where's this place you're talking about?"

The two girls turned to him and immediately sneered, apparently repulsed by his gaunt-looking face and general dishevelment. Silver suddenly became aware of how long it had been since he last showered.

Raising an eyebrow at him, the first girl sighed. "It's in this little place down in the Underground," she said. "They act like it's legit, but they seem pretty sketchy, if you ask me." Figuring this was enough, she and her companion left him in the elevator.

Silver leaned against the handrail in the back of the box. It was a longshot, but...if the photo place had Rocket uniforms, it was possible they were connected to the organization, and maybe, just maybe, they had some connection that could lead him to his father. His thoughts flitted briefly to Soul, and he shook his head. Regardless of if he even wanted to see her, Soul would have to wait.

* * *

Silver flopped face first onto the bed in his rented room in the Goldenrod Pokémon Center, and he groaned into his pillow. A whole week, wasted. He had spent the last few days skulking through alleys and seedy establishments, following every lead he could find on Team Rocket, and he had nothing to show for it. Well, nothing was only partially accurate; he had learned that Team Rocket officially disbanded after the Radio Tower Incident, and a year later, there were no signs of a revival. The few ex-members he had spoken to in the city didn't even know the whereabouts of the admins behind the latest branch of the team, let alone the man who had started the whole organization, his father. So, in essence, he had learned nothing useful.

He turned his head as he lied on his stomach, feeling miserable again. His Team Rocket leads had kept him going the past few days, and they had even distracted him enough that the dreams had stopped—instead, he had experienced dreams such as Rocket grunts pointing him to some remote cave deep in the woods, wherein he found Giovanni hibernating with some wild Ursaring. The dreams, while simultaneously amusing, were comforting when compared to his usual nightmares. But, with all his leads exhausted and nothing else to go on, he imagined his demons would come out in full force the moment he fell asleep.

As he lied there, completely energyless and muddled, he allowed his thoughts to drift to Soul. She was the only connection he had left. The one piece that had started the whole puzzle in the first place. But he couldn't go see her. What good would it do? He was more than sure she didn't want to see him again. His heart sank at the idea. Why did it bother him? Why could he not stop thinking about her? He had tried to work it out, but he just could not understand it. After all, hadn't she left because he told her to do so? Was it not his decision? So why the nightmares and the bizarre dreams where he was romantically involved with her?

He sighed; his brain hurt. To be honest, his everything hurt. He was sore and tired and depressed about his wasted effort. Against his better judgment, he climbed beneath the comforter, hoping his psyche would take pity on him and let him dream about absolutely nothing.

* * *

"Silver!"

The call came from down the hall. Silver sat up, momentarily unaware of his surroundings. As his vision focused he glanced around the room.

He recognized it immediately as his childhood bedroom. Toy figures of various Pokémon adorned the top of the dresser across from his bed on the far wall, and sunlight seeped through the curtains over the window on the back wall. A sky blue toy box sat in the corner opposite from the door, the outsides of the wooden box decorated with several differing Pokéball designs. A round red area rug accented the center of the room, and along the walls hung a variety of posters, some for the Pokémon League, others of assorted monsters in the Kanto region. His room was typical of any Pokémon Trainer, but he felt safe in its familiarity.

He put his feet on the floor and yawned. Stretching, he arose and made his way out of his bedroom, down the hall past his parents room, through the foyer, past the door to his father's study, and into the kitchen. There he found a woman with mid-back length strikingly crimson hair that ended in pointed spikes in all directions. She flitted around the room, humming to herself in her usual sweet soprano. Her light pink floral dress flattered her figure, the string of her white apron tied in a neat bow in the middle of her back. Silver stood in the doorway, admiring her with a warm smile. Always the early riser, meticulous about everything, cheerful to a fault, and a fabulous cook. These were the things he loved most about his mother.

The woman turned, and her maroon eyes lit up. "Ah, there you are, lazy bones!" she said, crossing the room to hug his neck. "You just missed your father; he had to get to the Gym early this morning." She held his cheeks and smiled at him. "Now then, come have breakfast with me."

Silver nodded and smothered a yawn as he crossed the spacious kitchen to a small, circular table, where his mother had laid out pancakes, juice, milk, and various other breakfast goods. He slid a chair out and sat down, debating on what to eat first.

"Ohhh, Silver, I wish you'd let me take you for a haircut; it's gotten so long," his mother said, regarding his hair with a frown.

"I like it long," Silver protested as he reached for a piece of toast from a nearby stack.

His mother sighed and then kissed the crown of his head. "If you say so, dear. So long as you're happy." She placed herself across from him at the table. "So, are you finally going to introduce me to her today?"

"To who?" Silver asked as he spread a healthy portion of jam onto his toast.

His mother smiled coyly at him as she rested her chin on her laced fingers, her elbows on the table. "Oh, come on now, you know who. The girl you met on your Pokémon journey! The one you've been traveling with but won't tell me anything about."

"There's nothing to tell," Silver shrugged, biting into his toast.

"Oh really?" she said, tones of distrust in her voice. She leaned in with an impish grin. "So you mean she's not my future daughter-in-law?"

Silver choked on the toast he had been chewing and reached for a nearby glass of juice. "Mom!" he gasped, exasperated, annoyed by her sudden fit of giggles.

"I'm just trying to gauge how special this girl is, that's all," she said, shrugging. "After all, you've been traveling with her for two years now. You can't tell me that you don't at least feel something for her."

Silver blushed behind his juice glass. "Jeez, Mom, why are you so nosy all of a sudden?"

"Inquiring minds want to know," she said with a sweet smile. "Now, tell me, what was her name, again?"

Silver replaced his glass on the table and sighed. "Soul. Her name is Soul. And we're just friends."

"...Oh, come on, now, we're more than just that, aren't we?"

The voice that responded was familiar, but it wasn't his mother's. Perplexed, he glanced up and froze.

In the chair where his mother had been only seconds before, staring expressionless at him, sat Soul.

Silver gaped at her, unsure of what was happening. His eyes quivered, confused and frightened. "Wh...What the…?"

"What's wrong, Silver?" Soul asked, her voice accompanied simultaneously by a second voice—the voice of his mother. She stood, and a ghostly visage of the red-headed woman overlapped her, as if they were the same body. "Tell me the truth about us," they said together.

Silver stood to run, but everything around him was suddenly blackness; there was nowhere to go. He turned to face the strange hybrid that was Soul and his mother, his body trembling.

"Tell me…" they repeated. "Tell me the truth…"

"_Stop it!_" Silver shouted, covering his ears and shutting his eyes tightly. "What's going on?!"

"I'm afraid there was nothing we could do," a different voice—a man's voice—said.

Silver looked up to find a man in a white labcoat with his back turned to him, apparently talking to someone opposite him whom Silver could not see. Silver couldn't make out everything he was saying; he only caught bits and pieces.

"—always had poor health, but this time was too much."

"—don't understand what happened. She just failed."

"—normally shouldn't have died—"

"—did everything we could to help her—"

"—rry for your loss."

Beyond the man in the white coat, Silver noticed a doorway. Desperate, he made a dash for it. "Mom, where are you? Mom?"

He reached the doorway, panting slightly, and stood at the threshold. The room was small but filled with medical equipment, all of which surrounded a hospital bed. Upon the bed lied a person, possibly sleeping, but for some odd reason, someone had pulled a white sheet over their face. Hesitantly, Silver approached, arm outstretched. Who was sleeping under the bed sheet, and why was he magnetically drawn to them? Where was his mother?

His hand hovered inches from the fabric, and just as his fingers brushed it, a large hand grabbed his and pulled it back. Silver turned, and the cold, intense leer of Giovanni met him. His father shook his head, looked over at the person in the bed, then walked away. Silver turned back to where the room had been, but instead found the shade of his mother facing him. She stood, translucent, wearing a white, floaty gown.

"Mom?"

She smiled sadly at him and then, tears in her eyes, turned and walked away.

"Mom, no!" Silver begged, reaching out.

The shade of his mother continued walking, ignorant to his pleas.

"Mom, wait!" he called, chasing her, his arm outstretched. "Mom, come back!" Despite running as fast as he was able, he couldn't catch her; on the contrary, the faster he ran, the further away she appeared to be. "Don't leave me alone!" He tripped and fell on all fours, sobbing. "_Don't leave me alone!_"

He sat there in the darkness, crying like a small child. His insides twisted in knots, and he felt as if he would vomit. In the end, he was always alone.

"...But you weren't alone."

The voice startled him, and he looked up to find Soul standing before him. He frowned and turned his head away. "Yes I was. My mother left, then my father—even you left me."

"Yes," Soul said gently as she knelt beside him, "I did leave. But that doesn't mean you're alone."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard," he scoffed.

Soul smiled. "Silver, did you love your mother?"

"Of course. What sort of idiot doesn't love his mother?"

"And even though she left you, do you still love her?"

He paused, weighing his thoughts. "...Yes."

"Then she's still with you, in the part of your heart that loves her," Soul explained, pointing to his chest.

"And what about you?" he asked, looking directly at her for the first time.

"What about me?" she replied, returning his gaze.

"You left me."

"Yes, I did," she said with a nod. She leaned closer, so their faces were only inches apart. "But tell me, Silver, do you feel alone?"

He stared into her eyes. They were full of warmth and gentleness. He felt he could melt into them. "No," he replied.

Her smile broadened. "And why do you suppose that is?"

Silver glanced at the ground, pondering. The revelation washed over him like a warm summer breeze. He turned to Soul, who smiled encouragingly at him. "..._Because I love you._"

Soul's eyes glossed, and she gently grasped his head and kissed his forehead. "So stop acting like you're all alone, you dummy."

He chuckled and met her gaze. His hand raised to cup the back of her head. Slowly, he leaned in…

* * *

A sharp knock on the door roused him from his dream. Disoriented, Silver glanced at the bedside clock. It was well past eight. He had actually slept through the night for once.

He sat up, replaying bits of the dream in his mind. His chest felt tight, his heart drumming against his ribs. He raised a hand to his face; his cheeks were warm. Normally he would have disregarded this post-dream euphoria, but...after everything he had just dreamt, after feeling sorry for himself for so long...he finally admitted what he had honestly known for weeks.

"...I'm in love with Soul."

* * *

Silver stared at the PokéGear in his lap, lost in his thoughts. In the end, he was too late. By the time he realized his own feelings, Soul had moved on. She didn't love him any more. The very thought made his chest ache. He supposed it was his karma catching up to him. After all the bad things he had done in his life, he had lost the girl who had reminded him what love was.

He took solace, at least, in the fact that she would be around him again, at least for a little while. They had agreed to go to Tohjo Falls together the following day, but after that, he supposed they would go their separate ways as friends. Perhaps they would meet upon occasion for a battle. He had a PokéGear finally, so perhaps he could call her every now and again. Maybe that would be enough to soothe his broken heart. He doubted it.

Sighing, he lied back on his pillow and stared at the ceiling. He did so for a long while, thinking, regretting, feeling. Just as he was starting to feel a bit drowsy, he heard a knock on the bedroom door.

"Silver, are you awake?"

His heart seized at the sound of her voice. Sitting up, he took a deep, calming breath. "Nn, yeah, come in."

The door opened, and Soul entered, still dressed in the pajamas she had worn when she broke his heart. "Merry Christmas," she said with a smile.

"Nn, Merry Christmas," he replied, nodding at her.

"I'm making cinnamon rolls for breakfast if you'd like to come down in a bit," she explained. "They should be ready in about ten minutes or so."

"Sounds good," Silver said.

"Right," Soul said with a nod. She stood in the open doorway for an uncomfortable moment. Obviously realizing her clumsiness, she nodded again, flustering. "Right, I'll go now."

Silver felt a sharp pang in his chest, and in reaction, he called out. "Soul?"

She stopped and turned, hand still on the doorknob. "Hm? What's up?"

He stared at her for a few seconds, mind racing. He exhaled, losing his courage. "Never mind," he said, shaking his head.

She frowned for a second, eyebrows furrowed, and then relented and left, closing the door with a soft click.

Silver put his hands over his face and groaned. Was being around her going to be so awkward going forward? He wondered if how he felt was how Soul felt back when she still liked him and he was oblivious to the fact. He imagined it probably was, and he felt a surge of guilt. Sighing, he pushed the covers back and put his feet on the floor. Like it or not, that awkwardness was his life, and he would just have to deal with it. And who knew, if she fell in love with him once, perhaps he could make it happen again. With that bright thought in his heart, he got out of the bed and opened the door, closing it behind him.

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"I guess this is the end of our journey together, then."


	39. Chapter 39: Endeavor

**Note:** A bit late this month, sorry. Enjoy!

* * *

_Follow Me_

A Pokémon Heart Gold/Soul Silver Story

Chapter Thirty-Nine

_Endeavor_

"Have you got everything?"

"Yep, all set," Soul replied to her mother as she closed her bag pocket.

"You're sure you don't want to stay another day?" Heart asked. "I know you probably have things to see and do, but Christmas was only just yesterday…"

"Mom…" Soul said with a sigh.

"I know, I can't keep you here forever, I get it…" Heart sighed and then looked pensively at her daughter. "You promise to call once a week to check in with me?"

Soul smiled, exhausted and endeared by her mother's relentlessness. "Don't I always?"

"And you, Silver," Heart said, turning to the boy who stood in the doorway, dressing in his new winter clothes, "you be sure to keep warm and eat right."

"Yes, ma'am," he said with a nod as he put his hand into the second glove and tugged it into place on his fingers.

"And be careful, the both of you," she scolded in her doting tone. "I know you're both Pokémon Trainers and completely capable of independence, but it doesn't mean you should be reckless."

"When am I ever reckless, Mom, honestly!" Soul protested, her cheeks huffed.

"I just want you both to be safe, that's all," Heart said, wringing her hands.

Soul clasped her mother's hands with her own for reassurance. "We'll be fine, Mom." She turned to Silver. "Won't we, Silver?"

He nodded with a slight half grin. "Nn, of course."

Smiling, her eyes glossy, Heart pulled Soul into a deep hug. "Ohhh, I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you, too, Mom," Soul said, returning the embrace.

Heart pulled away and turned to Silver. Closing the gap between them, she put her arms around him as well. "And_ you_ are welcome back any time," she said, patting his back a few times.

It had been quite a few years since he had been hugged by an adult; the last person to do so had been his mother. Recalling this with melancholy, he raised his arms in a half hug to politely accept the gesture.

She stepped back from him, smiling, and then she turned to Chocobo, who was chatting to Pyro in farewell. "And you," she said, regarding the Pokémon, "I look forward to seeing how much you've grown next time I see you." She ruffled his head feathers, and the Combusken crowed affectionately.

Soul turned to Pyro and petted his head. "You take good care of Mom for me, okay? You're the only one I can trust to do that."

The Typhlosion leaned his head into her hand and growled an affirmative.

"Pyro and I will be fine," Heart said, joining the Fire type's side. "You don't have to worry about us. Though, knowing you as I do, I know you will."

Soul grinned. "I learned from the best."

The two women smiled, mutually comforted.

"All right, we'd better get going," Soul said, shouldering her bag. "I promise I'll call you before New Year."

"Okay then," Heart said with a nod. "Good luck to you both in your travels."

Silver raised a hand in farewell. Heart returned the gesture, but Pyro leered at the redhead and growled in his throat. Eyebrow twitching, Silver glared back.

Waving good-bye, Soul opened the door, the crisp breeze of the December morning bursting across the threshold. "Bye, Mom, bye, Pyro!" She grabbed Silver's arm, his eyes still glare-locked with Pyro's, and she dragged him with her through the doorway, Chocobo close behind them as the door swung closed.

"Right then," Soul said, shivering a bit at the cold and turning up her collar to warrant her ears some protection. "Shall we head for Tohjo Falls?"

* * *

They rode together on Rosa, Soul's red Gyarados. Route 27's waters were icy but hardly impassable. Silver stared the water's surface, his reflection rippling in the path Rosa cut through it. He swallowed. "Did I ever tell you the story of how I first came to Johto?" he asked abruptly.

Soul, who sat in front of him, a ridge on the great serpent's back between them, turned her head. "No, I don't think you did. Though Crystal did tell me about the day she met you. Was that it?"

"Nn, yeah, she and Gold were the first people I met in Johto," Silver confirmed, inclining his head. "How much did she tell you?"

"She told me about how they found you on the beach like a drowned Rattata," she said with a sly smile, "and about how the three of you saved a Gyarados." Rosa turned her head at the mention of her species name, and Soul gave the Pokémon an affectionate thump on the neck. "Not you, silly," she cooed. She then turned to him as fully as she could on the serpent's back, which wasn't much. "The raft that got stuck on its head, it was yours, then?"

Silver nodded. "Nn, I slapped it together with stuff I stole while I was living on Route 26."

"You _lived_ on Route 26?" Soul asked, surprised.

"For two months, yeah," he said. "After my father left, I went back to our house in Viridian. About a week later, the police came there, looking for him. I was only a kid, still too green for Pokémon, and I worried that since I was Giovanni's son, they might put me under arrest, so I ran for it. I eventually made it to the gateway at Route 22. The gateways toward the Indigo Plateau and toward Mt. Silver were both guarded, so the only way I had to go was south, toward Route 26. But I didn't have any Pokémon, so traveling on the Route was dangerous. I spent a lot of my time running.

"I was young, and I had left in a hurry, so I didn't bring many supplies. The first thing I ever stole was food from some Trainers who were camped out on their way to the League." Silver sighed and looked at the sky, recalling harsher times. "I was so desperate and starving back then. I got really skilled at stealing because of that." He frowned. "Anyway, a month after starting out, I figured I should try to press forward with the supplies I'd stolen. That's when I came across this river," he said, regarding the water they currently traversed. "It was too wide to swim, and I didn't have a Pokémon or any Poké Balls to catch one. Poké Balls were the one thing I could never successfully steal, for some reason. So I got some tools and some rope and spent the next month building a raft, stealing supplies as I needed them. Finally, when summer was starting to settle in, I made the decision to cross."

* * *

The moon in the early June sky hung low, full and luminescent, near the end of its nocturnal journey. Bug Pokémon chirruped in the calm of the warm, sticky night. The waters that separated Route 27 from Johto sat ominously, a vast, wide pool of blackness.

Silver looked into the inky depths as he stood on the shore. It was time. Weeks of planning behind him, he took a deep breath. With much grunting, the nine-year-old dragged the dilapidated raft toward the water's edge. It was extremely heavy, and the individual logs shifted as they scraped across the ground. When he had pulled it close enough, Silver stopped, wiping his sweaty brow with the back of his hand. He tugged at the ropes that held the raft together, reassuring himself of their security. Frowning, he tightened several of the ropes, then he shouldered his backpack and faced west toward Johto.

Silver swallowed. Inhaling through his nostrils, he took one last look at the river and then turned to reposition himself behind the raft. The moment of truth was upon him. Crouching beside the ramshackle vessel, he leaned his body weight against it. His sneakers dug into the sand, and he grunted in his effort. With a rush of momentum, the raft shifted and splashed into the water. He stood quickly and squinted at the murky river with baited breath.

The little craft bobbed on the waves it had created upon entry. Picking up the large branch he had carved into a crude oar, Silver poked the center of the vessel. It sank negligibly at his pressure but swiftly righted itself when he ceased. He gripped the strap of his bag, swallowing. With a deep inhale, he lifted one foot over the raft, his other foot firmly planted on the sandy shore. He nudged the ship a few times then put some of his weight on it. Encouraged by its stability, he removed his other foot from the land and fully boarded the vessel.

The tiny raft rocked as it tried to equalize the weight of the small boy. It eventually did so, and he sat in the center of the vessel, heart racing with excitement. Nodding, he reached and retrieved his oar from the shore, then, without a second glance at the Route on which he had lived for the past eight weeks, he shoved the raft forward by pushing against the shoreline.

Traversing the vast river proved more difficult than he had anticipated. He realized with each hard stroke against the water that his oar truly was poorly-made. Not much point in dwelling on it, though. Not like he could change it now. He paddled onward, his arms aching from the strenuous effort. Sunlight crept over the surrounding mountains, the dawn of a new day. Sweat poured from his brow as he struggled against the water, his muscles screaming.

Quite suddenly, and to his terror, he felt a cool sensation on his legs. He looked down and discovered the raft dipping beneath the water. He was sinking. Panicking, he stood, hoping the redistribution of weight would help his plight—it did not. Frantic, he paddled faster. Water crept up his ankles as the raft sank further. He glanced up—the shore was on the horizon, if only he could last long enough. His rowing speed increased as his knees disappeared below the waterline. Only a little bit further…!

As water lapped at his middle, Silver glanced at the shoreline again. Could he swim the difference? He questioned his capability. The waterline reached his armpits, and he swore as he felt the raft sink beneath his feet. Tossing the oar aside, he floundered into the current.

The river was cold, even for summer, but Silver hardly noticed. His eyes focused intently on the sandy beach of New Bark Town. The pain in his arms numbing, he swam toward his goal in a desperate struggle for life. He had to make it to Johto. Kanto wasn't safe for him any more; his criminal father had seen to that end. His new life awaited him in that new region, on that sandy beach. He fought against the waves, the morning sun glistening off the ripples in his wake. Water lapped at his exposed face, his body engulfed up to the shoulder, and as his muscles screamed their protest, he panicked at the thought of drowning, his mind buzzing with adrenaline. Just as his strength began to wane, a rush of euphoria pulsed through his body—his foot brushed the murky bottom. Elated, he struggled forward until he staggered out of the water and collapsed on the foreign shore, his lower half still submerged in the shallows.

Silver wheezed, chest heaving as he lied on his back, his muscles twitching from the exertion. Staring up at the lightening sky, a chuckle started in his chest and quickly consumed him. Success! He had made it. All by himself, he had done the impossible and made it to Johto. _All by himself_…

His body swiftly reminded him of the price of his endeavor, and his eyelids drooped. Exhaling slowly to calm his pounding heart, he settled into a steady breathing pattern as his exhaustion overtook him, and he closed his eyes on the warm sand, the sound of the waves lapping against his lower body lulling him to sleep.

* * *

"That's incredible, Silver," Soul said, awed.

"It's not, really," Silver said, shaking his head. "I had a problem, and I tackled it in the only way I could."

"No, really, that is amazing," Soul disagreed, turning more to face him. "Silver, you're amazing."

His heart swelled, and he shook his head to mask his blushing. "It's really nothing special."

"It's more than I could've done at that age," Soul said, facing forward. "Sometimes I forget just how challenging things must have been for you, being on your own."

"Yeah…" Silver said, eyes distant.

"Oh, we're here," Soul announced as they approached the shores than marked the Johto-Kanto border. "From here, it's just a short trip to Tohjo Falls."

Silver grunted in his throat in acknowledgement, nodding.

* * *

Silver stepped from Rosa to the slimy slope carved into the cave surface, then he turned and offered a hand to Soul, who accepted his assistance. Turning, she returned Rosa and tucked the Ball into a special pocket in her bag with the rest of her Pokémon. "It's just a bit further from here," Soul said, passing Silver to lead the way. "Be careful, though; the path is really slippery."

The deafening roar of Tohjo's namesake waterfalls buzzed in Silver's ears, and he shuddered against the frigid, moist air. They walked past the first curtain of water, spray from the descending cascade spritzing their bodies. At the end of the narrow ridge, Silver noticed a small cave entrance, masked by the second waterfall. The location was fairly hidden, he noticed as he glanced around the immense cavern; only Trainers headed for the Indigo Plateau from Johto traveled this way, and even then, this ledge was well concealed on the cliff face and out of the way of the route he figured most Trainers would take. It was damp, to be sure, but then, he imagined his father didn't have the luxury of being choosy about his hiding spots.

Arriving at the edge of the waterfall, Soul gestured for Silver to pass her and enter first. Sidling against the wall to avoid being drenched by the downpour, Silver entered backward into the doorway and turned.

Pitch blackness greeted him, so he dug in his backpack for his flashlight, and Soul, joining him in the room, did likewise. Two beams of light pierced the darkness and scanned the room. It was more spacious than the cavern they had discovered on Route 47 several weeks prior, but only by a small margin. Jagged rocks and boulders accented the floors, and above them, craggy stalactites dangled from the ceiling. The air in the room reeked of mildew and dampness. Against the back wall, Silver's flashlight found a small radio, and he crossed the distance to it, his footsteps echoing in the small cave.

"Giovanni was listening to Archer's broadcast on that radio when I battled him," Soul explained as Silver crouched beside the device.

Silver examined the machine in the glow of his flashlight. It was several years old, judging by the design, and made for traveling. Silver hazily recognized it as a gift his mother had given his father in what felt like another life. Hesitantly, his hand reached for a knob and twisted it. No sound came out. Frowning, he tested a few other knobs, but nothing.

"It's broken," he said quietly, staring down at the defective device.

"Are you sure?" Soul said, joining him in the back of the cave.

Silver twisted the knobs in the glow of her flashlight beam for proof. "Busted," he said.

Soul bit her lip. Hesitating, she turned and took a step toward the entrance. "Well, maybe there's some other kind of clue here, like the pin we found."

"Doesn't look like it," Silver said, casting his light around the room. "It's clean. _Too_ clean, like he purposely covered his tracks. And yet," he said, turning back to the radio, "he left _you_ behind." He picked up the device. "But you're broken. What good are you to me?"

Soul wrung her hands, weighing her words. "Look, Silver...I know you were probably hoping to find something here, but...maybe he left it behind because it's broken, not for any special reason."

"Then why did he clean the cave so perfectly?" Silver asked, turning to her, still crouched, brandishing the radio. "Why leave no sign of human life here but the radio?"

"I don't know, Silver," Soul admitted, sighing. "But it's like you said: what good is a broken radio to you?"

Silver stared at the device in his hands, mouth dry, his head buzzing with questions to which he had no answers.

Soul swallowed, timidly stalling her words. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes. "I guess this is the end of our journey together, then."

He looked up at her, eyes wide, then he swallowed and lowered his head. "Right...you only agreed to bring me here to Tohjo," he recalled.

Soul nodded and then paused, her face impassive. "I really do wish you the best of luck, Silver. And hey, you have my PokéGear number, so you can always call me if you need my help again or if you're just looking for a battle…" She trailed off, eyeing her feet.

"Nn, sure," Silver said, swallowing again to unsuccessfully ease his dry throat. He stood and turned to her. "Thank-you...for everything, Soul."

"It's nothing," she said, shaking her head.

"No, I mean it," Silver said, closing the gap between them in a few steps. "If you hadn't been with me, there's no way I would've made it this far." He extended his hand to her and stared into her eyes. "So, thank-you."

Eyes glossing, Soul reached for his hand and shook it. In that moment, she very much wished she hadn't lied to him about her feelings two nights ago.

Her hand met his, and he shook it, wishing he could pull her into an embrace. Instead, he released her hand, returning his own to clutch the radio in his other hand.

"Right then…" Soul said, tucking her bangs behind her ear in the way Silver loved, "...see you around." She turned on her heel and shuffled out of the cave. Outside the entrance, Soul leaned her back against the damp cavern wall, fighting her emotions. Her chest ablaze, she allowed herself a sharp, quick sob, and a tear drizzled down her cheek, a lone, rebel escapee. Wiping fiercely at it, she inhaled deeply to clear her thoughts. Fists clenching, she turned to head across the ledge.

A loud, mechanical crash echoed behind her, and, gasping, she whirled around and reentered the cave.

Slumped against the back wall sat Silver, his face in his hands. Directly across from him lied the radio in a scattered, broken pile of electrical innards and plastic.

"Silver?" Soul asked in almost a whisper.

He looked up at her, face distraught. Jaw trembling, he put his face in his hands again and curled into his knees. "...I'm so tired of it, Soul…" he said, his voice cracking.

"Tired of what?" Soul encouraged, taking a step forward.

The words, "Of being alone," remained in the space between his mind and his throat, so instead, he said, "Of trying so hard to find someone who doesn't give a crap about me. Of being the only one who cares."

He heard Soul's footsteps as she approached him, his face still buried in his hands. He lifted his head just in time to see her wrap her arms around him to pull him into an embrace. He sat stunned as she leaned her head against his, her tenderness engulfing him. Pulling down his knees so they no longer obstructed him, he lifted his arms to hug her back right as she pulled away to look him in the eye.

"I'm sorry," she said, face saturated with sympathy. "I wish I had something better that I could say, but I don't." She hung her head.

Fighting his sudden romantic urges, Silver stood, shoving his hands in his pockets to preoccupy them. "Don't worry about it," he said with an air of his usual aloofness, fighting his longing to disassemble in front of her.

She stood as well, still staring at him. "D...Do you want me to stay for a little bit? Until you feel better?"

Silver shook his head despite the screaming of the opposite in his brain. "I'll be fine. Just need to cool off for a bit. You can go, if you want to."

Soul watched him as he turned his back to her, her heart crumbling. She didn't want to leave him. Not when he was so volatile and broken. But what good would come of her staying? It was in the best interest of their friendship that she kept things casual between them, but if she stayed, she would only burden him with her affection. Closing her eyes tightly, she turned.

Silver heard her shoes scrape on the gravel, and he closed his eyes, his mind numb.

She headed toward the exit, glancing at the wreckage that once was Giovanni's radio as she walked past. Something odd caught her eye, however, and stopping, she crouched beside it.

Tucked in between the innards of the radio, jutting out noticeably among the metal and plastic, was a folded piece of paper. Extracting it, Soul unfurled it, noticing the small, neat handwriting, which she read. Her mouth fell open.

"Silver?"

He turned, hands still in his pockets. "Nn?" he grunted, eyebrows furrowed at her peculiar position.

She stood and brought the note to him, retrieving her flashlight to aid him. Silver took it and scanned the page, eyes widening.

"_To Scarlet's son:_

_Seek me at the beginning._"

Silver reread the note in rapid succession, mind unable to keep up with the explosion of thoughts.

"It's for you, right?" Soul gasped at his shoulder. "The note, it's definitely meant for you, isn't it?"

Silver nodded, adding quietly, "Scarlet was my mother's name."

Soul gasped excitedly, tugging on his arm. "_Ohh_, Silver! This is fantastic! It's a clue! A real, solid clue to where your father is!"

Silver inclined his head in agreement, still gazing at the small slip of paper. "And I'm pretty sure I know where he's asking me to go."

Soul held her breath. "Where?" she asked after a few tense seconds in which he did not respond.

Silver swallowed. "Our house back in Viridian City."

Soul blinked. "But...wouldn't someone else be living there now?"

"No," Silver said, shaking his head. I went by there over the summer. The police treated it like a crime scene and taped and boarded the whole place. But the problem is," he said, looking up at her," the place is crawling with police at all times, like they're convinced he's going to turn up there." Silver glanced back at the note, grinning. "And that arrogant bastard did just that."

"So would it be difficult for us to get in?"

"Nn, probably, but if we go at night, it's possible they might have a lax guar—" He froze, the realization dawning on him. He turned to her. "'_Us?_'"

She smiled cooly at him. "You honestly think I'd leave now, when we're this close?"

* * *

**Selected quote from the next chapter:**

"Of course I'm going in, too."


End file.
